Who exactly is this Ishmael guy‪?‬ Big Book Club's "What the Whale!"

This week we realize that running off to sea and adopting a nome-de-mer is usually a sign that you're trying to escape from something...
PSA: You can learn pirate in the Mango Languages app, free with your library card.
Palate cleansers:
Megan - Lore Olympus web comic Pete - "Good Omens" by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett Jennie - "Comrade Detective" comedy TV show on Amazon Prime and "Chuck Norris vs. Communism" documentary Alex - "Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster" by Svetlana Aleksievich