White Jacket or The World in a Man-of-War by Herman Melville 1925 7th Impression
White-Jacket; or, The World in a Man-of-War, also known as White-Jacket, is a novel by Herman Melville originally published in 1850. Based on Melville’s experiences as an ordinary seaman aboard the frigate USS United States from 1843 to 1844, as well as stories told to him by other sailors, the novel is harshly critical of virtually every aspect of American naval life. It thus ranks as Melville’s most politically strident work.
The last novel published during the lifetime of Jack Kerouac (1922-1969), Founding Father of the Beat Generation, in the year before his death. A fictionalized memoir as are almost all his works, this book, sub-titled “An Adventurous Education, 1935-46” (title page) recounts the early experiences of the author from childhood through young adulthood.
A rare and richly illustrated 1544 chronicle of world history, bound in a 17th-century antiphonary leaf and one of only two known copies in private hands. The author was historical in his own right by safeguarding Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms.
