Ulysses
Book description
James Joyce's masterpiece, Ulysses, tells of the diverse events which befall Leopold Bloom and Stephen Dedalus in Dublin on one day in June 1904. It is considered to be one of the most important works of modernist literature and was hailed as a work of genius by W. B. Yeats,…
Why read it?
2 authors picked Ulysses as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
Ulysses may be one of the best books ever written, though it is also one of the most challenging.
In exchange for the effort, you are rewarded with Joyce’s unparalleled command of English and his invention of stream-of-conscious writing. I listened to a set of lectures, one on each chapter, as I made my way through the book, which made all the difference. There are written guides as well.
Ulysses takes place on a single day in Dublin. Each chapter reveals a different aspect of Joyce’s genius. For example, in one chapter, a baby is born, and Joyce starts the…
I received my first copy of this iconic book, a Bodley Head hardcover edition for my eighteenth birthday from a girl who worked in libraries and knew I liked books. I found the novel tough going initially, having been enraptured earlier by Joyce’s short stories Dubliners which were far more straightforward and accessible. But I went back to Ulysses at different stages in my life, reading different editions, determined to finish the book which I did three times and was glad I did as I learned more about the workings of this novel, loosely based on Homer’s epic, the more…
From James' list on understanding experimental and literary fiction.
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