James Joyce's Ulysses (Mass Market Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Of the many efforts made to interpret Joyce's magnum opus, the best by far is that by Stuart Gilbert."

-- Chicago Sunday Tribune

"Most serious Joyce readers owe to Stuart Gilbert their first introduction to the richness and complexity of Ulysses. His monumental pioneer analysis remains an essential Baedeker."

-- Saturday Review -- Review

Review

"Of the many efforts made to interpret Joyce's magnum opus, the best by far is that by Stuart Gilbert."

-- Chicago Sunday Tribune

"Most serious Joyce readers owe to Stuart Gilbert their first introduction to the richness and complexity of Ulysses. His monumental pioneer analysis remains an essential Baedeker."

-- Saturday Review

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Vintage (January 12, 1955)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394700139
• ISBN-13: 978-0394700137
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #63,634 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-have, November 23, 2003

By	C. N. White "neilicus107" (Raleigh, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

James Joyce has more books written about him and his works than possibly anyone else in the english language - barring Shakespeare. There are countless guides through the labyrinth that is Ulysses, and all do their job well, some better than others. This one, by Stuart Gilbert, was the first and is still the best. Originally written in the thirties, it remains the definitive guide to Joyce's masterpiece of modernism. Gilbert was a close friend of Joyce's, and it was written under the scrutiny and supervision of Joyce himself, making this the closest thing to a guide written by the author himself (which would probably be unintelligible in itself!). This small, helpful book guided me through one of the most difficult but most rewarding reading experiences of my life - and saw me through safely to the other side, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is taking the plunge for the first time.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading, August 10, 2000

By	T. P. Russell "solitary_man" (Wichita, KS United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Gilbert has written a classic analysis of Ulysses . This book provides both the initiate and the fanatic with a broad basis for comprehension of Joyce. It include historical documentation of the settlement of Ireland, connections of Troy and Ireland, an interesting view of Viking/ Greek parallels, aspects of occult knowledge. Failure to read this and you will not get 1/3 of the intricacy of Joyces works.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A way in to Ulysses, January 20, 2005

By	Shalom Freedman "Shalom Freedman" (Jerusalem,Israel) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

Gilbert provides insight into Ulysses which it is extremely doubt the reader can get alone. He provides the overall plan of the work, the diagram of each sentence and how it coordinates with all the categories which Joyce combined in constructing his encyclopediac work. Stuart was at one point close to Joyce and has much of his information from the master himself. I do not know if there is a better guide, but this as the first is a very good one. It helped me understand at least the outline of the work and its basic structure.