You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
stefo 's review for:
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
by James Joyce
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have really mixed feelings about this book, it has some brilliant moments, especially Chapter 3. Unfortunately however its very sluggish, I almost fell asleep reading like 10 times until I realized I could take in this mess by audiobook, and by God was that a good decision, everything was so much easier to understand without having to suffer Joyce's lack of commas in his sentences. As for themes go I quite enjoyed Stephen's internal tumult and questioning of everything around him, It did remind me of when I was 10 or 12, after his Catholic school days however (start of Chapter 5) stuff became very, very dry and boring. I really did not care about the characters' banter and debates of beauty and aesthetics as they are pretty outdated.
I surely hope that Ulysses is much better and a more interesting read since everyone told me to read this book here and Dubliners first. Will take a long break before reading anything Joyce however. Very LIGHTLY recommended, only for people who like this type of heavy literature.
I surely hope that Ulysses is much better and a more interesting read since everyone told me to read this book here and Dubliners first. Will take a long break before reading anything Joyce however. Very LIGHTLY recommended, only for people who like this type of heavy literature.
Content Warnings
Minor: Physical abuse, Violence, Excrement, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry