Moby-Dick or, The whale

This book is a classic, a book that casts a long shadow over American literature, a book that is thought of as possibly the best American novel and one that, in my opinion, is really two books. The first is like a documentary: detailing the specific activity of whaling, and the second part is very slow, overly full of similes and metaphors, extremely descriptive and tedious with some parts being wonderfully and beautifully written. In comparison to other classics I think it pales, but the good bits are good, but far apart. In the spirit of the way the book is written, getting to to main element of the story is like waiting for the washing to dry while it is raining.