The Encantadas (or Enchanted Isles), is a series of ten descriptive sketches, and a reminiscence from Melville’s sailor times uncovering the ecologically pristine Galapagos Islands as both charming and horrifying. Made up of some of Melville’s most memorable prose, The Encantadas had been a critical success at a time when Melville’s fortunes had been down. After publication, the brand new York Dispatch cited the chapters as universally considered being among the most interesting papers of that popular Mag, and each successive chapter was browse with avidity by thousands. The reviewer called the sketches sort of mixture of ‘Mardi’ and ‘Robinson Crusoe’–though far more interesting compared to the first named function.