--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Moby Dick is my favorite book —I’ve been…" description: "\"“Moby Dick is my favorite book —I’ve been rereading it every year since I was sixteen. ‘Call me Ishmael’ is the greatest first line in a novel ever wri..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/douglas-preston-7731_books_moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been_1503536.jpg" --- # Moby Dick is my favorite book —I’ve been rereading it… ![“Moby Dick is my favorite book —I’ve been rereading it every year since I was sixteen. ‘Call me Ishmael’ is the greatest first line in a novel ever written.”“I, myself, am not fond of animal stories.” quote by Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/douglas-preston-7731_books_moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been_1503536.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/douglas-preston-7731_books_moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been_1503536.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/douglas-preston-7731_books_moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been_1503536.jpg) > ““Moby Dick is my favorite book —I’ve been rereading it every year since I was sixteen. ‘Call me Ishmael’ is the greatest first line in a novel ever written.”“I, myself, am not fond of animal stories.”” [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker loves Moby-Dick, rereading it annually, and praises its opening line as the greatest ever. **In simple terms:** Moby-Dick is a beloved, repeatedly read novel with an iconic opening. Key Takeaway Revisit favorite books for lasting inspiration. Themes literature nostalgia personal growth Mood reflective enthusiastic Type literary personal When to use this quote - college reading - personal reflection - literary discussion Key Concepts classic novel iconic opening repetition Questions to Reflect On - How does rereading a favorite book change your perception over time? - What makes a first line unforgettable? A Different Perspective Personal taste may not resonate with all readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Favorite book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/favorite-book/) [Ishmael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ishmael/) [Moby Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moby-dick/) ## Related quotes > [“Call me Ishmael. Some years ago - never mind how long precisely - having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/call-me-ishmael-some-years-ago-never-mind-how-long-precisely-having-2/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Call me Ishmael. Some years ago—never mind how long precisely—having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/call-me-ishmael-some-years-ago-never-mind-how-long-precisely-having-4/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Call me Ishmael. Some years ago--never mind how long precisely--having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/call-me-ishmael-some-years-ago-never-mind-how-long-precisely-having-3/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“It is a truth universally acknowledged, he’d mused, that most people will never find their ‘call me Ishmael’.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/django-wylie/it-is-a-truth-universally-acknowledged-he-d-mused-that-most-people/) Django Wylie > [“Call me Ishmael.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/call-me-ishmael/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Call me Ishmael. Some years ago--never mind how long precisely--having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/call-me-ishmael-some-years-ago-never-mind-how-long-precisely-having/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“MOBY DICK; OR THE WHALE by Herman Melville CHAPTER 1 Loomings Call me Ishmael. Some years ago—never mind how long precisely— having little or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/moby-dick-or-the-whale-by-herman-melville-chapter-1-loomings-call-me/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [The great lesson I get from 'Moby-Dick' is that when the times are bad, when there is great foreboding, there are still ways to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-philbrick/the-great-lesson-i-get-from-moby-dick-is-that-when-the-times-are-bad/) [Nathaniel Philbrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-philbrick/) > [I think I'm a bit like Ishmael in 'Moby Dick': a story teller and an observer in his own crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/i-think-i-m-a-bit-like-ishmael-in-moby-dick-a-story-teller-and-an/) [Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/) > [“My favorite book is God-Shaped Hole. It’s not a classic. It’s better than a classic. It’s a modern-day tragedy. I’ve never read Moby-Dick but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/my-favorite-book-is-god-shaped-hole-it-s-not-a-classic-it-s-better/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) > [“There is Irish Spring, but there is no fall soap.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-mooney/there-is-irish-spring-but-there-is-no-fall-soap/) Jerry Mooney > [Captain Ahab drowned, he reminded himself; it was the trimmer, Ishmael, who survived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/captain-ahab-drowned-he-reminded-himself-it-was-the-trimmer-ishmael/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [I really admire the experimentalists who challenge traditional narrative - writers like Ishmael Reed, Michael Martone, Donald Barthelme, Tatyana Tolstaya, George Saunders, and many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-weinstein/i-really-admire-the-experimentalists-who-challenge-traditional/) [Alexander Weinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-weinstein/) > [“Such was the Arab of the desert, the dweller in tents, in whom was fulfilled the prophetic destiny of his ancestor Ishmael. "He will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/such-was-the-arab-of-the-desert-the-dweller-in-tents-in-whom-was/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [“You don't have to see it to love it. Just love it for it is good and that is love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-thogolith/you-don-t-have-to-see-it-to-love-it-just-love-it-for-it-is-good-and/) christian Thogolith ## More by Douglas Preston > [“The Tyrannosaurus rex was a creature of the jungle. She lived in the deepest forests and swamps of North America, not long after it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/the-tyrannosaurus-rex-was-a-creature-of-the-jungle-she-lived-in-the/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“William Duncan Strong was a scholar, a man ahead of his time: quiet, careful and meticulous in his work, averse to spectacle and publicity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/william-duncan-strong-was-a-scholar-a-man-ahead-of-his-time-quiet/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [I need to write in a small room - the smaller the better. I can't write in a big room where someone might sneak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/i-need-to-write-in-a-small-room-the-smaller-the-better-i-can-t-write/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“Global warming has opened the southern door of the United States not just to leish but to many other diseases. The big ones now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/global-warming-has-opened-the-southern-door-of-the-united-states-not/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“Boxer altered his course subtly, as if that was the way he'd already been going, not looking up to acknowledge he had heard, letting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/boxer-altered-his-course-subtly-as-if-that-was-the-way-he-d-already/) [douglas preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“A strange, pale figure emerged—Pendergast?—and she felt herself suddenly in his arms, lifted bodily as if she were a child again, her head cradled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/a-strange-pale-figure-emerged-pendergast-and-she-felt-herself/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [I'm pretty much a 9-to-5 kind of guy. I usually get to work about 8 in the morning, and I work until 4 or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/i-m-pretty-much-a-9-to-5-kind-of-guy-i-usually-get-to-work-about-8-in/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“People need history in order to know themselves, to build a sense of identity and pride, continuity, community, and hope for the future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/people-need-history-in-order-to-know-themselves-to-build-a-sense-of/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“When the team excavated, they uncovered the shattered ruins of a fortress, over fifteen centuries old, with massive walls and eight towers, matching the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/when-the-team-excavated-they-uncovered-the-shattered-ruins-of-a/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [There are so many journalists out there, I hate to say it, who are lazy and don't do their research - and it shows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/there-are-so-many-journalists-out-there-i-hate-to-say-it-who-are-lazy/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“What the hell was your pal Bertin demanding?” he asked. “Sipping syrup?” “It’s a cocktail he prefers when he gets, ah, overly excited.” “A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/what-the-hell-was-your-pal-bertin-demanding-he-asked-sipping-syrup-it/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“No civilization has survived forever. All move toward dissolution, one after the other, like waves of the sea falling upon the shore. None, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/no-civilization-has-survived-forever-all-move-toward-dissolution-one/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“She’s more a daiquiri and margarita drinker.”“We all have our flaws,” said Pendergast.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/she-s-more-a-daiquiri-and-margarita-drinker-we-all-have-our-flaws/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [Pirate Hunters is a fantastic book, an utterly engrossing and satisfying read. It tells the story of the hunt for the rare wreck of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/pirate-hunters-is-a-fantastic-book-an-utterly-engrossing-and/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) > [“Religion arose as an effort to explicate the inexplicable, control the uncontrollable, make bearable the unbearable. Belief in a higher power became the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/religion-arose-as-an-effort-to-explicate-the-inexplicable-control-the/) [Douglas Preston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) [Explore all 80 Douglas Preston quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Moby Dick is my favorite book —I’ve been rereading it every year since I was sixteen. ‘Call me Ishmael’ is the greatest first line in a novel ever written.”“I, myself, am not fond of animal stories.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Douglas Preston" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been-rereading-it-every-year-since/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been-rereading-it-every-year-since/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/douglas-preston-7731_books_moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been_1503536.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/douglas-preston-7731_books_moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been_1503536.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e03/douglas-preston-7731_books_moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been_1503536.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Moby Dick is my favorite book —I’ve been rereading it every year since I was sixteen. ‘Call me Ishmael’ is…” — Douglas Preston", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Douglas Preston", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-preston/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Moby Dick is my favorite book...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been-rereading-it-every-year-since/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-preston/moby-dick-is-my-favorite-book-i-ve-been-rereading-it-every-year-since/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```