I had a brief introduction to James Joyce by reading "Araby" ions ago in high school, and was looking to become more acquainted with his works. This collection performed by Gabriel Byrne was a joy to listen to...who better to hear it from than a Dubliner and a great actor to boot?! Although I was debating whether or not it was better to read his works directly before listening to any interpretation, film or audio alike, I don`t regret it. In fact, I think it will help me appreciate Joyce more when I go back to read the works featured. The chamber music as well left me thinking of another time and place, adding a nice backdrop for the dialogue.

Listening through the 'James Joyce Collection' is pleasure itself. The four cassettes offer the best of Joyce's shorter works (short parts of 'The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man', short stories from 'The Dubliners' and poems from 'Chamber Music'). Even those who find Joyces's big works difficult will have an excellent time listening to these pieces of work. The short stories and poems are enchanting as they portray Joyce's Dublin and Dubliners, the stories are of a riveting kind. Byrne's sensitive, lively performance renders them all the more enjoyable. The gentle brogue of the Irish actor gives you an additional touch of authenticity. The 'James Joyce Collection' is well worth buying if you're yearning for an intense auditive and literary experience.

The James Joyce Audio Collection is a captivating and enjoyable set of Joyce's best works, read by Joyce himself and three other wonderful performers. The Joyce readings are amazingly remastered, and it is an "epiphany" to listen to a writer like Joyce to read from "Ulysses," his most inspired and personal work. Other highlights of the collection include Cyril Cusack's spirited readings from Joyce's "Portrait of An Artist as a Young Man" This passionate performance brings Joyce's prose to dazzling life and it is an unforgettable experience. This collection is a great way to experience Joyce's literature as it was meant to be; lyrical and vibrant.

James Joyce reads from his work. Who could ask for anything more? (I could. Why didn't he read every word he ever wrote?) N.B.: in the "Anna Livia" episode, he lays on the Irish accent with a trowel. I can see the Grammies: "and the winner is...James Joyce for 'Anna Livia Plurabelle'! " Pour a glass of bluemilk, loosen your talktapes, and enjoyce.

If you think you are a fan of James Joyce - and you dont know about this audio - you must buy this immediately. I think this is the only recording of JAMES JOYCE READING JAMES JOYCE available (I havent be able to find anything else). An excellent recording - and considering when it was recorded - excellent quality.

I heard selections from this on the radio on Bloom'sday (what 12 years ago?) and it was, essentially, my first experience with Joyce. I became an instant fan. Incidentally, this may have been the basis for my theory that the only proper way to read the book is _out loud_; suddenly it becomes much clearer and more intelligible (and, I might add, funnier!)

(My only complete reading of Dubliners was from this version.)

1. What makes Dubliners so amenable to an annotated edition is that it is essentially an immediately accessible work of fiction - Joyce's only one, (the Portrait's a little trickier).

The multiple place and character references make up a significant portion of the narratives - lose these settings, and you're not left with the virtuoso, stand-alone subtle psychological complexities of either the Portrait or Ulysses to gnaw on.

2. Is it "Margaret Mary Allicott"? I forget the spelling. Apologies. A reference is made to her in Dubliners... Buck Mulligan refers to her in Ulysses as "Margaret Mary ANYcock".

Without annotations, what can you make of that? Who was she?

The annotated Dubliners points out that MMA was a figure of considerable religious veneration in Dublin at the time. Icons of her were to be found in many homes. She would drink only dirty washwater, and ate only the pus from her numerous sores:

Neglecting the body = Sanctity = turn of the century Dublin morality [! ]

The annotations permit you to enjoy not only the bizarre character of the Zeitgeist, but also appreciate the Buck's nasty pun.

3. My point here is that you can only appreciate these sorts of references WITH annotations. And you can easily imagine that the instances are numerous.

The pictures & annotations are not "a key"; rather they breathe life into a good collection of early Joycean tales.

4. A fun copy. And remember, these stories were originally read by people who DID understand the references and allusions.

The only readable version of Dubliners and heartily commended to all wishing to enjoy and appreciate these heartwarming yarns of a city's moral and psychological twilight: paralysis, disillusionment, and collapse.

Survey sez: "Marvellous".

The voluminous notes gave me a richer understanding of this work. The book is beautfully laid out and much easier to read than other "annotated" books. I wish the author's would tackle ULYSSES next.

I found several copies of the book, new and unused, for sale at Heffers bookstore in Cambridge, UK.

The drawings, photographs, and newspaper clippings provide a first hand sense of what Joyce's Dublin was like then. Like a mail order fountain pen, whose newspaper advertisement from Christmas 1903 is reproduced in the book. Maybe Gabriel Conroy bought one. I've never used a fountain pen - to me the advertisement is a subtle reminder of how distant Joyce's Dublin is from us now.

Warning - It's tempting to spend more time reading the notes and annotations than reading Joyce himself.

The author has tightly focused his attention on the SLEEP aspects of the Wake. While this makes for a rather monochromatic presentation bordering the banal, the clarity and sheer thrust of the presentation are indisputable. (At bottom, one really doesn't like to admit there's so much IN the Wake that such restrained scholarship is required.)

[from the text, pp.4-7]: "Suppose we charged ourselves with the task of providing in chronological order a detailed account of everything that occurred to us NOT last night...but in the first half-hour of last night's sleep. The 'hole affair' [535.20], (and a 'hole', unlike a 'whole', has no content), will likely summon up a sustained 'blank memory' [515.33]: 'You wouldn't should as youd remesner, I hypnot' [360.23-24]. What would become equally obscure, even questionable, is the stability of identity...No one remembers the experience of sleep at all as a sequence of events linked chronologically in time by cause and effect."

Joyce remarked to his friend William Bird:

"'About my new work - do you know, Bird, I confess I can't understand some of my critics, like Pound or Miss Weaver, for instance. They say it's OBSCURE. They compare it, of course, with ULYSSES. But the action of ULYSSES was chiefly in the daytime, and the action of my new work takes place chiefly at night. It's natural things should not be so clear at night, isn't it now?'"

This guy's read "Finnegans Wake" a thousand times, so it seems, and his knowledge of Joyce and environs is wide. I'd recommend "Joyce's Book of the Dark" for you Wakeans out there who need to dig deeper into the book of the delpth.

The ultimate treatment of Joyce's confusing classic, Bishop's comprehensive analysis goes beyond typical literary interpretations. Focusing of such diverse influences as Vico's "New Science" and The Egyptian Book of the Dead, Bishop shows the compexity of Joyce, as well as his almost total command of the English language, and language in general. If you've ever wondered about Vico's historical thesis, and want to understand how Vico permeates Joyce, this is the book to read. In the end, you'll come away with a better appreciation of Joyce's text, and a feeling of amazement at Vico's poorly understood, but far-sighted view of mankind.

Great set of tapes from a lecture given by Campbell on Joyce. Also available as video tape set at many college libraries. The book "Mythic Worlds, Mystic Words, Joseph Campbell on James Joyce" contains much of the lecture and more. Great in all formats !

Only Campbell could make Joyce seem so accessible, and he was eminently qualified since he spent a good portion of his life studying Joyce. The first 5 minutes are a billiant summary and distillation of a writer who is broader and more universal in his scope than anyone since Shakespeare. The only slight downside is the occasional throat-clearing and other noises that are part of a live recording, but it's a minor distraction. Five tapes might seem long when you start, but you'll wish it was longer when you're done.

Joseph Campbell coauthored the classic Finnegans Wake reference Skeleton Key, and in these six tapes of an informal lecture to a small audience he presents another tour de force encompassing his analysis of Portrait, Ulysses, and Wake.

He delivers Joyce's theory of art, (alone worth the price of the tapes), relates the texts' themes to mythology and philosophy, and generally provides a wonderful sense of James Joyce as a brilliant man of sorrows, acquainted with grief, who labored mightily to bring forth the Big Three. Perhaps even on a level with Stuart Gilbert's "James Joyce's Ulysses".

These tapes are a great buy for anyone interested in Joyce.

I was subjected to the MMPI and it's interpretations while attempting to maintain equal parenting time of my son. After my attorney ignored repeated requests for the results, I fired him, and have since represented myself.

Knowledge is Power. This book provides a "survey course" that will help pro per litigants. After reading it, I knew more about the MMPI than my lawyer.

In a court of law, you should be able to ask the forensic psychologist, "Sir, was the MMPI designed to evaluate parental ability"? Of course, the answer is, "No". But in family court, Rules of Evidence do not apply. If you memorize this book, you will be able to take apart any forensic psychologist.

Good Luck,

Kids Need Both Parents

copss.org

I am a medical librarian. Although this is not my area of expertise, I thought the book contained some good explanations and warnings. I did make a correction that I wish to share with other readers in case someone might choose to use Harold Klawans' otherwise excellent description of what is considered medical literature, which is quoted in chapter 8. "Index Medicus" is put together by the National Library of Medicine, not the Library of Congress.

From his first encounter with Joyce's writings in Paris in 1927, Campbell remained deeply involved with the works of Joyce. He gave many lectures on Joyce, frequently read from his works, and published a number of articles on Joyce's works. This book provides a survey of Campbell's Joycean studies by conflating his articles and representative lectures, from his obituary notice on the death of Joyce in 1941 to lectures delivered within a few years of Campbell's death. Also included, in the "Dialogues" section, is a selection of Campbell's responses to questions from members of the audience at some of his lectures. Questions from listeners seemed to fire Campbell, and some of these exchanges provide a deeper insight into the material presented in the formal lectures. This book contains both elementary material and advanced analysis of the work of Joyce; it is, therefore, both an introduction to Joyce's major works and a major contribution to Joyce criticism. The whole provides a representative portrait of Joseph Campbell as a critic of Joyce. 304 pp. (From the back cover).

For me this book helps parralell the inner workings of you or me, reminding me of the pathes we take, no matter the presence or withdrawl of glamour, are adventures..... IT IS A VALUABLE screenwriters source.

There are few books I would read in one sitting. This is one of them. The recollectionns of Jim Joyce may open the hearts and minds of other vets who had similar experiences. Jim Joyce is an excellent writer and his recollections of the war will certainly help other vets to deal with past memories, bad and good. The book would make a fine play or even a movie. I hope he continues writing.

Pucker Factor 10 was a very enjoyable journey as the author turns "of age". It flows extremely well, and has a good balance of humor and sobriety, peppered with perspective. It, of course, will resonate with the Vietnam era helicopter pilots but with those who served in any capacity in the Vietnam War---as well as those who didn't. It is entertaining, in a "Mash" sort of way.

The book is a clear and compelling guide to Joyce's main works. Tindall's enthusiasm is contagious.

"...Ulysses offers something of value to someone. What part of this is received depends upon the capacity, experience, and taste of the receiver. Homeric similie: as a radio station of great power broadcasts in vain unless a receiver is there with the power on and all the tubes in order; as the power and quality of the receiver are the success of the broadcast; so with Ulysses and the reader."

"For me the significance of the form Joyce made and I all but apprehend is a humane and charitable understanding of mankind that makes me glad to be alive and part of it. Charity, for me, is the radiance of this great whole, this intricate harmony."

Buy this one, and also seek out his "Reader's Guide to 'Finnegans Wake'". Pretty much essential, I'd say. Well written, informative, and strangely fun. Wish I could've met Tindall! "In risu veritas."

This book make FW a bit less obscure. First he narrows his focus to the ten 100-letter Thunderwords in FW and shows that, like DNA in a chromosome, each Thunder contains all the themes of its section in microcosm. (find the Joseph Campbell on Finnegans Wake video and hear him read the first thunderword for the full effect) Second, he fits FW in the genre of Minippean satire, so its disorderly mess has a bit of company on the bookshelf. Hey, "Every artist creates his own precursors", Borges wrote. When I went to school, it was Horatian and Juvenalian, nice and nasty, Garison Keillor vs Howard Stern. Well, now there's room for Tristram Shandy and Frank Zappa, too. A good entree to the subject.

trivia: The author's dad was the guy Alvy Singer produced to silence the movieline bore in Annie Hall.

The bibliography alone is worth the price. Prof. McLuhan describes the Menippean tradition beginning with Lucian and traces a continuous line to Joyce. He describes the breakdown of the Greek Logos into the Trivium, and how the ratio between Grammar, Rhetoric, and Dialectic (and the culture itself) changes under the influence of technology. He shows how Joyce uses the thunders as rhetorical gestures enacting the transformation of culture by technological metaphor using textual context and multilingual etymology. Sounds horribly stiff, perhaps; its really much more fun (and much freer) than most over-conceptualized scholarship.