billy budd the handsome sailor is drafted to fight aboard a british man of war at the height of the napoleonic wars. at first revered, billy budd is forced nto an act of violence that has disastrous consequences in this powerful tale of the rise and fall of a hero. from bartleby the scrivener the tale of a depressed wall street worker, to las encantadas an adventure in the galapagos islands, this collection of four novellas showcases melville's extraordinary storytelling talent, realised in his masterpice moby dick which also earned him the reputation as one of the greatest short fiction wrietrs of his age.