Isle of the Cross
Encyclopedia
Isle of the Cross was an unpublished and subsequently lost
novel by Herman Melville
. The work was completed after the commercial failures of Moby-Dick
and Pierre: or, The Ambiguities
. Concerned about poor reviews of Pierre, and Melville's continuing viability as a successful novelist, the work was rejected by his publisher, Harper & Brothers
.
Some consider that Melville’s later short story titled Norfolk Isle and the Chola Widow, the eighth sketch of The Encantadas, Melville’s tale of a grief-struck lady named Hunilla is a shorter rewrite of Isle of the Cross. The novel "The Secret of Lost Things" by Sheridan Hay partially revolves around "Isle of the Cross" as a central plot point. In the novel, one of the characters, Walter Geist, is secretly purchasing the original manuscript.
Lost work
A lost work is a document or literary work produced some time in the past of which no surviving copies are known to exist. Works may be lost to history either through the destruction of the original manuscript, or through the non-survival of any copies of the work. Deliberate destruction of works...
novel by Herman Melville
Herman Melville
Herman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet. He is best known for his novel Moby-Dick and the posthumous novella Billy Budd....
. The work was completed after the commercial failures of Moby-Dick
Moby-Dick
Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, was written by American author Herman Melville and first published in 1851. It is considered by some to be a Great American Novel and a treasure of world literature. The story tells the adventures of wandering sailor Ishmael, and his voyage on the whaleship Pequod,...
and Pierre: or, The Ambiguities
Pierre: or, The Ambiguities
Pierre: or, The Ambiguities is a novel written by Herman Melville, and published in 1852 by Harper & Brothers.The publication of Pierre was a critical and financial disaster for Melville. It was universally condemned for both its morals and its style...
. Concerned about poor reviews of Pierre, and Melville's continuing viability as a successful novelist, the work was rejected by his publisher, Harper & Brothers
Harper & Brothers
Harper is an American publishing house, the flagship imprint of global publisher HarperCollins.-History:James Harper and his brother John, printers by training, started their book publishing business J. & J. Harper in 1817. Their two brothers, Joseph Wesley Harper and Fletcher Harper, joined them...
.
Some consider that Melville’s later short story titled Norfolk Isle and the Chola Widow, the eighth sketch of The Encantadas, Melville’s tale of a grief-struck lady named Hunilla is a shorter rewrite of Isle of the Cross. The novel "The Secret of Lost Things" by Sheridan Hay partially revolves around "Isle of the Cross" as a central plot point. In the novel, one of the characters, Walter Geist, is secretly purchasing the original manuscript.