Welcome to Litsy!

This novel is essentially what I take to be Joyce‘s own coming of age story in which he ultimately sets out to free himself of Irish revivalism, language and politics, his early forays into sexual addiction which he then overreacted to by immersing himself in the Catholic faith and then later discovering that he believed none of it and that his college friends were full of shit. I can appreciate the project, but I didn‘t much care for this book.

I don‘t usually read older books which made it a little hot if a difficult read. 10/10 nonetheless

I like the concept and shifting prose of Portrait, but ultimately didn‘t find the events interesting or the writing exhilarating enough to keep me engaged and it became a bit of a chore to finish. I enjoyed all the Dublin references to think of whilst I walk around the city. 6/10

#IndelibleMoments #Epiphany Joyce wrote an epiphany is the moment when “the soul of the commonest object..seems to us radiant,and may be manifested through any chance,word,or gesture.”
If you‘ve ever experienced it, you know it.And that is what a lot of Joyce‘s writing is about.

A touch reckoning with church. #SavvySettings, Day 21 #Church
@Eggs @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

The 2nd book in my challenge of one book per month from my Modern Library collection.

Ever read a book & listen to the audiobook at the same time? I did on this one. It's my first time reading Joyce. Not an easy read, so having someone reading it along with me helped. I also “cheated“ & watched a couple of video reviews along the way to aid understanding (and googled stuff). Ended up liking it a lot.

Full review: https://tinyurl.com/59nhjcwp

Once upon a time and a very good time it was there was a moocow coming down along the road and this moocow that was coming down along the road met a nicens little boy named baby tuckoo...
#firstlinefridays
@ShyBookOwl

“Pride and hope and desire like crushed herbs in his heart sent up vapours of maddening incense before the eyes of his mind. He strode down the hill amid the #tumult of sudden-risen vapours of wounded pride and fallen hope and baffled desire. They streamed upwards before his anguished eyes in dense and maddening fumes and passed away above him till at last the air was clear and cold again.” #QuotsyJul21

At times a tough read, the payoff is remarkable journey not just a character's life, but also their mind. It well deserves it's place as a classic.

“I will tell you what I will do and what I will not do. I will not serve that in which I no longer believe, whether it call itself my home, my fatherland, or my church: and I will try to express myself in some mode of life or art as freely as I can and as wholly as I can, using for my defence the only arms I allow myself to use — silence, exile and cunning.“

Remembering James Joyce on his birthday.

I gave this the old college try. I really did. But just couldn‘t finish, in spite of some interesting passages. Handed it back to son just before he leaves for sophomore year (which is this upcoming weekend). He liked this one and was disappointed I gave up — but we had a good discussion about how he probably got more out of it by being able to discuss and read along with others in a class. And not every book is for everyone! #1001Books

I told son I was going to bail on this book and he was so disappointed. “Can‘t you try Spark notes online ?” Okay, I‘ll try that. But I think this puzzle has a better chance of being done soon!

At least our readalong of SK‘s The Stand is moving along well!

Only God could do that. He tried to think what a big thought that must be; but he could only think of God. God was God's name just as his name was Stephen. DIEU was the French for God and that was God's name too; and when anyone prayed to God and said DIEU then God knew at once that it was a French person that was praying.

Younger son pressed this into my hands and offhandedly said “the footnotes are helpful”. So here I am 😨. Anything for him!! This was one of the assigned reads for the college class he recently finished.

#1001Books

It started with some promise but became more progressively rambling and with pages of religious sermonising that I lost interest and just gave up sadly.

“I will tell you what I will do and what I will not do. I will not serve that in which I no longer believe, whether it call itself my home, my fatherland, or my church: and I will try to express myself in some mode of life or art as freely as I can and as wholly as I can, using for my defence the only arms I allow myself to use — silence, exile and cunning.“

Remembering James Joyce on his birthday.

Happy Birthday, James Joyce ! Born on this date in 1882.

I‘ve not been so happy to be finished with a book in a LONG time. If this hadn‘t been for a book club, I wouldn‘t have bothered reading past the first 10 pages. Stream of consciousness has never been my thing and this just served to further confirm that.

December‘s Tequila Mockingbird book club pick

I‘ve never read Joyce before. Actually I should say I‘ve never finished Joyce before. I started Dubliners once years ago and just never got into it.

Late to the party but here it goes

#7covers7days Day 1

Thanks for the tag @Daisey

#QuotsyJune19 Day 9: #Incoherent
I have yet to read this novel by James Joyce who with his stream of consciousness narration is sometimes said to be #incoherent. 🤓😍🧚🏼‍♀️📚

#J is for James Joyce. #30JuneBooks
@howjessreads

I finally finished reading this today!

It‘s a warm spring day in my neck of Ontario and I‘m thinking green today 🎋

1. Yes, mostly involving travel.
2. Yes!
3. Yes. I‘d like to visit Antarctica but don‘t like being cold.
4. I just started this and already want to bail. It‘s my own copy, though, so I‘ll pick it up later when I don‘t have library books due and fast-approaching book club meetings.
#Ireland #literaryluck
#hellothursday

The Irish Catholic Upbringing... 7/10

Was very hard to get through!!!!!!!

Consciousness of place came ebbing back to him slowly over a vast tract of time unlit, unfelt, unlived.

My current read!!! And damn it's slow in pace.
Semi Autobiographical in nature, I've been engrossed in certain parts of this book so much, that it has been a hard time coming back to reality😭.....and certain parts of it, just put me too sleep.😪
Hands down one of the most conflicting/polarising books I've read in my life✋✋

#goodbookbadpacing #saynotobailing

Onwards to the next book in my road to Ulysses, I loved sections of Dubliners so let‘s see what we find here!

#oldcoolbooks #bildungsroman Once I remembered what that word meant I knew I had many of these.😃

I would suggest reading this if you're into Modernist writing. It's certainly not my favorite book, but it had a lot of good moments. I'm satisfied having read it; perhaps I'm satisfied saying that I've read it.

I struggled to connect with the characters, but a lot of my peers didn't. Maybe it's a me thing. I'd suggest reading if you're a lit. major for sure. I could at least learn from the writing style.

Doing my trip of Belgium ( Brussels - Ghent - Brugge - Antwerp) and found a lovely bookshop + coffeeshop where I had to buy a book ( so I got the local Harry Potter copy for my collection and this book which I've been meaning to read for a while) I haven't read much so far, but we are having a nice break for tea and I'll try and read some more!

I enjoyed it thoroughly. Again. it's the fourth time. Academic reads. (Can't dare to read apart from college stuffs at this moment??). It has everything I look for in a non-fiction. Beautiful way of description. Characters are well conceived. Perfect way to present an almost autobiography. I love Joyce. Looking forward to read "Ulysses" too.

A must read for every Bookworm... if you still haven't.

"The object of the artist is the creation of the beautiful. What the beautiful is is another question."

#jamesjoyce #amreading #reading

Sláinte! Retiring this evening with Bushmills and a gorgeous James Joyce from The Folio Society. #happystpatricksday #foliosociety #Irish #bushmills

☘️☘️☘️🍀☘️☘️☘️ 💚💚💚

"He was unheeded, happy, and near to the wild heart of life."
The moment of liberation at the end.

#JanuaryRecap #NewYearReads @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @bookloo

Photos from Goodreads.com

Joyce is a complicated author. He knows how to transport you to an early 20th-century Ireland. This is a semi-autobiographical novel, and the reflection of coming-of-age for a boy during an important period of Ireland‘s political history=spot-on. The discussions of Catholicism, philosophy, and politics were brilliant. I can‘t say I enjoyed the whole book, but I‘m happy to have read it. I‘d recommend starting with Dubliners if you‘re new to Joyce!

“I will try to express myself in some mode of life or art as freely as I can and as wholly as I can, using for my defense the only arms I allow myself to use—silence, exile, and cunning”