Product Description

"Ulysses" is one of the greatest literary works in the English language. In his remarkable tour de force, Joyce catalogues one day - June 16, 1904 - in immense detail as Leopold Bloom wanders through Dublin, talking, observing, musing and always remembering Molly, his passionate, wayward wife. Set in the shadow of Homer's "Odyssey" and internal thoughts, Joyce's famous stream of consciousness give physical reality extra colour and perspective. This long-awaited unabridged recording of James Joyce's "Ulysses" is released to coincide with the 100th anniversary of degree Bloomsday. Regarded by many as the single most important novel of the 20th century, the abridged recording by Norton and Riordan released in the first year of "Naxos AudioBooks" (1994) is a proven bestseller. Now the two return - having recorded most of Joyce's other work - in a newly recorded unabridged production, directed by Joyce expert Roger Marsh.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #521258 in Books
• Published on: 2004-05-01
• Released on: 2004-05-01
• Format: Unabridged
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 22
• Binding: Audio CD

From AudioFile
It is an imposing enough task to attempt a quality unabridged recording of James Joyce's ULYSSES. Add to that the aim to provide the listener with 18 smoothly segued musical transitions consisting of songs and opera excerpts mentioned in the novel; a booklet with a track-by-track commentary, introduction, and explanatory essays; and finally a CD-ROM packed with further supplements (Web links, booklists, interviews with the performers, sound files of Joyce reading excerpts, and more)--and you have as ambitious and rewarding an audio production as any that exists, an audio experience that truly deserves to be cherished. Joyce's celebrated novel follows Stephen Dedalus and Leopold Bloom as they travel in Dublin on June 16, 1904. Joyce's inspiration was THE ODYSSEY and the fullness of humanity he recognized in Odysseus, whose adventures he obliquely recreates in the wanderings of Bloom. Following along with the novel while listening to the discs reveals the enormous care that director Roger Marsh and reader Jim Norton lavish on the project. Their orchestrated performance is a work of love and respect for Joyce and his experimental, poetic, funny, musical epic book. Jim Norton has a wonderfully rich and friendly voice, appreciative of the humor and cadences of the text and even of the onomatopoetic textual noises of cat purrs, door creaks, and print-press groans: "Everything speaks in its own way." His performance turns a challenging book into an inviting, even a hypnotic, one. Marcella Riordan satisfyingly performs the dialogue of Molly Bloom, including the 24,000-word unpunctuated stream-of-consciousness passage that concludes the novel. Readers of ULYSSES have long been encouraged to read out loud the more difficult sections for added comprehension and enjoyment of the language. Now, thanks to Naxos, the entire book is available in a performance to savor. It is safe to say that anyone wanting to experience the preeminent work of modern fiction has in this package the perfect audio companion. G.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Customer Reviews

read this if you are a Joyce fanatic
Stuff you probably want to know:

1. It's read by two people: one guy, who does absolutely everything (including Molly) up till the last chapter, then the last chapter, which is read entirely by a woman.

2. The guy is supremely talented at reading. It's a dramatic reading, in which he imitates the voices of the others and tries to get into it. I would regard his imitation of the voices of others as supremely believable.

3. He has a light British accent (London), but switches to a convincing Irish brogue when reading straight spoken dialogue for most characters. Excellent French and Latin pronunciation. His Italian and Spanish are less successful. The woman is certifiably Irish.

4. There are no sound effects (footsteps, keys, etc.), but there are a few songs interlarded, usually at the beginning of each CD.

5. If you're a Joyce scholar, you are doubtless using the Gabler edition of 1986, WHICH WASN'T THE EDITION USED FOR THIS. I think they're actually using the 1922 edition! Anyhow, this is a constant irritant for serious Joyce fanatics, as, since you are doubtless using Gabler, there'll be something in almost every paragraph that's just a whit different. It's a constant distraction, alas!

6. He reads it a little fast for my taste (especially in Circe).

7. Yes, it is totally unabridged.

8. There are 22 CD's total.

9. You should buy it. I had read Ulysses twice before I got it, and going through it with this CD set really opened up the book to me, in a way I couldn't have gotten with any other type of ancillary aid. It was like reading the book for the first time! Wasn't so incomprehensible after all!

I should warn you that one thing you might find thoroughly infuriating is that the title tracks / id tags of the CD tracks are totally in chaos. It's so bizarre, it smacks of sabotage. (For example, the title track of the 1st track of the 2nd (!) CD is: "Time for lunch. 1 p.m. After Dignam's funeral . . ." While the actual content is the "ineluctable modality of the visible" passage. It's craaaaazy!

Rest assured, this is just the names your computer sees: everything is there, and in the correct order. My point is that if you plan on porting everything over to your iPod, you're gonna have some tedious clerical work ahead of you.

What a great rendition!
I have listened in the past to the taped rendition of Ulysses, and I pushed my way through it for the bragging rights. This new version is just so superb and so amazing in its vitality.

While at times Ulysses is still a challenge to grasp, I can guarantee that the whole book is much more comprehensible, and wonderful, to hear it read so well. It suddenly makes sense.

As a by-the-way, the Naxos packaging is second only to Apple's iPod in the pleasure I got from handling it and opening it.

Thanks Jimmy
Superbly read, clear and at a rate which allows you to read along with the recording and take in the meaning very well, even if you may have to pause a few times to make sure you get every penis allusion...

The notes in the boxset are a gem as well, clearing outlining the plot and what each track on the cd will be discussing briefly. Very well produced, even to the extent of reversing the audio in Circe where 'The Voice Of All the Damned' proclaims the mighty: Htengier Tnetopinmo Dog Drol eht rof, Aiulella!

Music tracks introduce each section, with songs appropriately chosen for the episode. To hear the Dublin voices aloud is superb and increases the understanding and humour gained from this great work of literature. Heartly recommended from this shout in the street.