Scan barcode
blakezissman's review
adventurous
challenging
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
msmagoo502's review
I have to read audiobooks because I'm blind and the audiobook version that I had was very bad recording and also there's a lot of either Celtic language in this book or it's written like Chaucer and it's just too hard to read or sit through so I'm just choosing not to torture myself with this. If they ever made a version of this without the crazy language that I could understand easier and actually feel like I was accomplishing something I would absolutely read that but the way it stands I can't do that to myself.
drief2001's review
challenging
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
artemiscat's review
5.0
Can i truly claim to have read this book? Yes. No. Yes, out-loud in great detail. No, never entirely. Yes, I've studied it. No, I don't understand most of it. In depth, out of depth.
In Dublin in the store that sells lemon soap we gathered around noon to read Joyce. Sometimes Wake read by experts and actors and analysts and one day of the few days I was there a hapless tourist from Spain who said after, "I'm sorry, my English is normally much better, but I don't understand it."
And everyone, even the professors said "We don't understand it either," and convinced the young man to come back later in the week and read something more accessible, like Dubliners.
I don't think we're supposed to understand it so much as feel it out, I think that's part of the point. But I am always seeking out those books that make me feel like I'm a little girl again, sneaking reading materials off my father's desk and diving in without total comprehension wherever it was the bookmark landed. Swimming towards meaning can be more fulfilling than knowing.
In Dublin in the store that sells lemon soap we gathered around noon to read Joyce. Sometimes Wake read by experts and actors and analysts and one day of the few days I was there a hapless tourist from Spain who said after, "I'm sorry, my English is normally much better, but I don't understand it."
And everyone, even the professors said "We don't understand it either," and convinced the young man to come back later in the week and read something more accessible, like Dubliners.
I don't think we're supposed to understand it so much as feel it out, I think that's part of the point. But I am always seeking out those books that make me feel like I'm a little girl again, sneaking reading materials off my father's desk and diving in without total comprehension wherever it was the bookmark landed. Swimming towards meaning can be more fulfilling than knowing.
craigwiley89's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I’ve never been so frequently annoyed at a book I’ve loved so much. The people who think it’s an infuriating slog are right, it’s just that the people who think it’s a a book with some of the most beautiful stuff ever written are right. There are wonders on every incomprehensible page.
By the time I was halfway through it felt like different parts of my brain were leaking into each other as I read. It simply does things that other books can’t do, even in principle - the way its language means multiple layers can happen at the same time and mutually interact. But hoo, it’s rough going.
By the time I was halfway through it felt like different parts of my brain were leaking into each other as I read. It simply does things that other books can’t do, even in principle - the way its language means multiple layers can happen at the same time and mutually interact. But hoo, it’s rough going.
ajreader's review
2.0
Read my full thoughts on this book and hundreds more over at Read.Write.Repeat.
If I've learned anything from this challenge, it's that Joyce is simply not for me. I'm not anywhere close to bright enough to decipher his prose.
If I've learned anything from this challenge, it's that Joyce is simply not for me. I'm not anywhere close to bright enough to decipher his prose.
bgatsch's review
5.0
I'm struggling a bit here with assigning a star rating to this book. None of the standard metrics seem to apply. Did I like it? I don't know. Would I read it again? Maybe. Is it well-written? I'm not sure I'm qualified to make that judgement. And at this point, I'm glad to just be shelving it as "read." In the end, I'll just conclude that this is a reading experience unlike any other and trying to figure out what this book is about is a little like standing in front of a Rothko asking what it's supposed to be a painting of. Take it for what it is, and beyond anything else, it's an astounding piece of work.
Also, I love the "My review has spoilers" option for this book. What would that even look like? It turns out that Earwicker is the Howth Castle Environs! Oh no. Ruined that one now. And now I can use the spoiler tag, I guess.
Also, I love the "My review has spoilers" option for this book. What would that even look like? It turns out that Earwicker is the Howth Castle Environs! Oh no. Ruined that one now. And now I can use the spoiler tag, I guess.
colorfulleo92's review
1.0
This was more an experience than anything else. I never felt like I quite understood what was going on or what was said but I couldn't stop reading it. Somewhere Omstarter simply looking at all the words I didn't know what they meant and there where so damn many. I could have written them done and researched it but that would take far to long. Fascinating piece of nonsense for me. Maybe one day I'll can pick it back up and understand it better or have someone in my life that I can buddy read with and have them explain. I feel that this book need it's own dictionary
erinkellyreads's review
2.0
In college I somehow ended up in a literature class that was all James Joyce for the whole semester. I loved the pieces of Ireland and clear longing in all of his works, but some definitely spoke better than others. This is...fine.