Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

Dubliners by James Joyce

16 reviews

jayisreading's review against another edition

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reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

I don’t think there’s much I can say that hasn’t been said already about this short story collection, both good and bad. I have a soft spot for this collection as a result of having studied a fair bit of Irish literature as an undergrad. It’s also interesting to think about this collection in relation to Joyce’s writing career, knowing that this was essentially a stepping stone.

I love the way these stories capture the everyday lives of Dubliners at the time and the bittersweetness of life with such intimacy. To me, there’s something powerful about the inconclusiveness of these stories, instead, leaving the reader to sit with each protagonist’s thoughts by the end of the story. It’s also interesting to reread this collection nearly ten years later. The rose-tinted glasses are now off, and I see that it’s not perfect by any means (not that I thought it was perfect before, but I certainly was enamored with twentieth-century Irish literature).

Like most (if not all) short stories, some I loved, while others… not so much. Some of my favorites were: “Araby,” “A Little Cloud,” “A Painful Case,” and, of course, “The Dead.”

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smute's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75


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futureofmydays's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.25


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lena_and_her_books's review against another edition

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biblioseph's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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ssgcedits's review against another edition

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dark informative reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book does a good job of capturing the culture and social issues of industrial Dublin. It is very sad and at some points hard to read, but it is too important to set aside. The writing style is just sheer beauty.

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