Book Cover of Billy Budd

Billy Budd

by Herman Melville

Billy Budd, Sailor (An Inside Narrative) is a novella by American writer Herman Melville, left unfinished at his death in 1891. Acclaimed by critics as a masterpiece when a hastily transcribed version was finally published in 1924, it quickly took its place as a classic second only to Moby-Dick among Melville's works. Billy Budd is a "handsome sailor" who strikes and inadvertently kills his false accuser, Master-at-arms John Claggart. The ship's Captain, Edward Vere, recognizes Billy's lack of intent, but claims that the law of mutiny requires him to sentence Billy to be hanged.

Book Details

Language

English

Original Language

English

Published In

1924

Author

Herman Melville image

Herman Melville

United States

Melville's growing literary ambition showed in Moby-Dick (1851), which took nearly a year and a half to write, but it did not find an audience and critics scorned his psychological novel Pierre: or, T...

More on Herman Melville

Listen/Download Audiobook

Read by:
00:00
Playback Speed 1.0
00:00
  • Select Speed

Related books

A Network of Crime Cover image

A Network of Crime by Nicholas Carter

It follows the story of Detective Harry Challenor who is tasked with solving a complex network of criminal activities that seem to be connected to a s...

Beyond the Vanishing Point Cover image

Beyond the Vanishing Point by Ray Cummings

It follows the adventures of a group of scientists as they journey beyond the vanishing point, a mysterious and unknown realm that lies beyond the lim...

In Search of the Castaways Cover image

In Search of the Castaways by Jules Verne

In Search of the Castaways is a novel by the French writer Jules Verne, published in 1867–68. The original edition, published by Hetzel, contains a nu...

Joseph and his Brethren Cover image

Joseph and his Brethren by W. K. Tweedie

The story is a retelling of the Biblical tale of Joseph and his brothers, set against the backdrop of ancient Egypt. The novel follows the story of J...

A Daughter of the Snows  Cover image

A Daughter of the Snows by Jack London

A Daughter of the Snows is Jack London's first novel. Set in the Yukon, it tells the story of Frona Welse, "a Stanford graduate and physical Valkyrie"...

Island Nights' Entertainments Cover image

Island Nights' Entertainments by Robert Louis Stevenson

Embark on a captivating journey into the heart of the South Seas with Robert Louis Stevenson's captivating collection of short stories, "Island Nights...

The Pirate, and The Three Cutters Cover image

The Pirate, and The Three Cutters by Frederick Marryat

It tells the story of a young naval officer, Lieutenant Easy, who finds himself caught up in a battle between pirates and the Royal Navy. Marryat's b...

Tad Coon's Tricks Cover image

Tad Coon's Tricks by John Breck

Tad Coon is always in trouble with all his tricks. Follow his adventures with Nibble the Rabbit, Stripe the Skunk, Doctor Muskrat, and his other frien...

Nelly Channell Cover image

Nelly Channell by Sarah Doudney

In the enchanting world of "Nelly Channell" by Sarah Doudney, secrets and mysteries unfurl like delicate petals. Hidden beneath the veneer of Victoria...

The Mill Mystery Cover image

The Mill Mystery by Anna Katharine Green

A mysterious death at a remote mill sets the stage for a suspenseful mystery in which nothing is as it seems. "The Mill Mystery" is a novel by Anna K...

Reviews for Billy Budd

No reviews posted or approved, yet...