North Sun

Finalist for the 2025 National Book Awards for Fiction, North Sun, or the Voyage of the Whaleship Esther is a compelling debut novel that explores the final days of the American whaling industry through the crew's journey from New Bedford in 1878. As they navigate the Pacific and the Chukchi Sea, their quest for whales becomes intertwined with their captain's urgent personal mission, leading to increasingly brutal and haunting encounters with the natural world. This allegorical tale examines the impacts of environmental exploitation, resonating with both historical and contemporary themes of adventure and endurance.