Which classic book opens with the line "Call me Ishmael"?

The story behind the answer

“Call me Ishmael” is the famous opening line of Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick (1851). Ishmael is the narrator who joins Captain Ahab’s doomed hunt for the white whale. The other options open differently: A Tale of Two Cities begins “It was the best of times…,” Wuthering Heights with Mr. Lockwood’s diary, and Kidnapped with David Balfour’s account.

Fun context: “Ishmael” is a biblical outcast and wanderer—perfect for a roving sailor who observes more than he commands. Memory tip: Ishmael → “Ish-whale”—the narrator’s name points you to the whale book. Remembering this iconic first line anchors Moby-Dick as the great American sea epic about obsession, fate, and the per