13 h 29 minAudiobook9 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the sea promises a fresh start, but gives you hard work, bitter men and shattered dreams?
Wellingborough Redburn leaves a family fallen on hard times and signs aboard the Highlander, bound from New York to Liverpool. He wants adventure and a place of his own. As the lowest-ranking boy aboard, he faces scant pay, cold weather and Jackson, a sickly sailor who rules through fear.
Liverpool offers no simple escape. With his father's old guidebook in hand, Redburn explores a city that refuses to match his expectations. Harry Bolton brings charm and the lure of a riskier world. In Herman Melville's sea novel, an older narrator looks back on the boy whose hopes meet the harsh facts of working life.
What you’ll discover
- A boy among sailors Step aboard the Highlander, where Redburn's dreams meet the demands of daily work.
- Fear beneath the sails Meet Jackson, whose failing body does nothing to soften his hold over the crew.
- A guidebook and a city Walk Liverpool with Redburn as his father's book meets streets full of misery.
- Charm with a risk Encounter Harry Bolton, whose polished manners draw Redburn toward a glittering, uncertain world.
- Innocence seen with humor Discover a coming-of-age story that looks back at youthful illusions with a smile.
Who will love it
For readers who love sea stories, coming-of-age tales and vivid pictures of working life in the nineteenth century.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A poor boy longs for the sea
- The ship is nothing like his dreams
- Jackson rules the crew through fear
- Liverpool does not match the old guidebook
- Harry Bolton brings glamour and trouble
- Innocence meets the world, told with a smile
Who’s who
- Wellingborough RedburnA proud, sensitive boy from a family that has lost its money, who goes to sea hoping to find adventure and his own place.
- JacksonA thin, sickly and bitter sailor who dominates the crew through fear and takes a strong dislike to the young newcomer.
- Harry BoltonA well-dressed young man Redburn meets in Liverpool, charming and fashionable, who draws him toward a more glittering and risky world.
- Captain RigaThe master of the Highlander, polished and talkative on land, but remote and unhelpful to the boy once the ship is at sea.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 13 h 29 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 9 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Redburn. His First Voyage in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Redburn. His First Voyage
by Herman Melville · 1849
A proud boy sails for Liverpool seeking adventure, but a hostile crew puts his dreams of the sea to the test.
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then USD 0.14 a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
A poor boy longs for the sea
Wellingborough Redburn grows up in a family that was once comfortable and has slid into hard times. His father is dead, money is short, and the boy feels the shame of a family that has come down in the world. He has dreamed about the sea for years, fed by stories and by objects his father brought home from his own travels. Among them is a glass ship that stood on the mantelpiece, a small sign of far places.
Redburn does not see the sea as work. He sees it as escape, a way to earn his own bread and to see the world his father saw. He is proud and sensitive, and he thinks a voyage will turn him into a man. The older narrator who tells the story smiles at this boy, but he does not mock him. He remembers how real those hopes felt.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Redburn. His First Voyage
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Redburn by Herman Melville about?
It follows Wellingborough Redburn, a young man from a family that has lost its money, on his first voyage as a sailor from New York to Liverpool. He learns hard lessons about work, class and the world.
Is Redburn based on a true story?
It is a novel, but it draws on Melville's own first trip to sea as a young man, when he sailed to Liverpool on a merchant ship. Events and characters are shaped for fiction.
Who is Jackson in Redburn?
Jackson is a sick but menacing sailor on the Highlander who rules the forecastle by fear and treats young Redburn with open hatred. He is the book's chief picture of cruelty.
The author
Herman Melville
1819–1891 · American novelist and poet
Herman Melville (1819–1891) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and poet. He was born and died in New York City and also lived in Massachusetts. He published Moby-Dick in 1851, Pierre in 1852, and The Confidence-Man in 1857. His unfinished Billy Budd was published after his death, in 1924.
More by Herman Melville
All 11 books
Free
More like this
Free
Free
Free
FreeOur mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
Popular in adventure
See all
Free
Free
Free
