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Title: based on a true story
Review: I recently finished reading Nathaniel Philbrick's excellent book, "The Heart of the Sea, the story of the Whaleship Essex" and realized that Sena Naslund took a major chunk of her story from real-life events. I suggest that readers of "Ahab's Wife" read Philbrick's book next--it is much more interesting and a truly fantastic read. Naslund most certainly based the seafaring section of her novel upon this true story: the whaleship Essex is stove by a white whale in the South Pacific. The men take refuge in whaleboats, and the captain is convinced by his mates to head to South America instead of Tahiti, out of fear of cannibalism, yet they eventually resort to cannibalism themselves. I had to skim parts of Naslund's book, as it got so tedious in parts. In contrast, Philbrick's book kept me riveted from start to finish.
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