{"product_id":"9781593082536","title":"Billy Budd and the Piazza Tales (Barnes \u0026 Noble Classics Series)","description":"\u003ci\u003eBilly Budd and the Piazza Tales\u003c\/i\u003e, by \u003cb\u003eHerman Melville\u003c\/b\u003e, is part of the \u003ci\u003eBarnes \u0026amp; Noble Classics\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eseries, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of \u003ci\u003eBarnes \u0026amp; Noble Classics\u003c\/i\u003e: \u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNew introductions commissioned from today's top writers and scholars \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBiographies of the authors \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFootnotes and endnotes \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSelective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eComments by other famous authors \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStudy questions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBibliographies for further reading \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eIndices \u0026amp; Glossaries, when appropriate\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003eAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. \u003ci\u003eBarnes \u0026amp; Noble Classics \u003c\/i\u003epulls together a constellation of influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works.\u003cp\u003eLargely neglected in his own lifetime, \u003cb\u003eHerman Melville\u003c\/b\u003e mastered not only the great American novel but also the short story and novella forms. In \u003ci\u003eBilly Budd and The\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003ePiazza Tales\u003c\/i\u003e, Melville reveals an uncanny awareness of the inscrutable nature of reality.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePublished posthumously in 1924, \u003ci\u003eBilly Budd\u003c\/i\u003e is a masterpiece second only to Melville’s \u003ci\u003eMoby-Dick\u003c\/i\u003e. This complex short novel tells the story of “the handsome sailor” Billy who, provoked by a false charge, accidentally kills the satanic master-at-arms. Unable to defend himself due to a stammer, he is hanged, going willingly to his fate. Although typically ambiguous, \u003ci\u003eBilly Budd\u003c\/i\u003e is seen by many as a testament to Melville’s ultimate reconciliation with the incongruities and injustices of life.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Piazza Tales\u003c\/i\u003e (1856) comprises six short stories, including the perpetually popular “Benito Cereno” and “Bartleby,” a tale of a scrivener who repeatedly distills his mordant criticism of the workplace into the deceptively simple phrase “I would prefer not to.” \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eRobert G. O’Meally\u003c\/b\u003e is Zora Neale Hurston Professor of Literature at Columbia University, where he has served on the faculty for seventeen years; since 1999 he has been the director of Columbia’s Center for Jazz Studies. He is the author of \u003ci\u003eThe Craft of Ralph Ellison\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eLady Day: The Many Faces of Billie Holiday\u003c\/i\u003e, and the principal writer of \u003ci\u003eSeeing Jazz\u003c\/i\u003e, the catalog for the Smithsonian Institution’s exhibit on jazz painting and literature.","brand":"Barnes \u0026 Noble","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47031078617328,"sku":"9781593082536","price":8.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781593082536_p0.jpg?v=1763810320","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781593082536","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}