Typee Author:Herman Melville Typee made Herman Melville famous at 27 years old. The story is closely based on the author's four-month sojourn with a group of South Sea Islanders, the Typees, after he and a companion deserted their whaling ship. Initially the two Americans are charmed by the exotic life of the Typees--their physical beauty, their warriors, their graceful wom... more »en--and they embrace their food and customs. And yet the land of the Typees is not paradise: the two men are guests who can't leave, and gradually they learn of customs of a chilling nature, making their escape from this tropical island a necessity.« less