Ulysses: A Reader's Odyssey
Ulysses: A Reader's Odyssey
By Daniel Mulhall
An essential introduction for all readers seeking to navigate Joyce's notoriously impenetrable masterpiece.
ISBN: 9781848408296 | Paperback with plate section | 324pp | Release date: 14th January 2022
About the Book:
Marking the centenary of Ireland’s – and possibly the world’s – most famous novel, this joyful introductory guide opens up Ulysses to a whole new readership, offering insight into the literary, historical and cultural elements at play in James Joyce’s masterwork.
Both eloquent and erudite, this book is an initiation into the wonders of Joyce’s writing and of the world that inspired it, written by Daniel Mulhall, Ireland’s ambassador to the United States and an advocate for Irish literature around the world.
One hundred years on from that novel’s first publication, Ulysses: A Reader’s Odyssey takes us on a journey through one of the twentieth century’s greatest works of fiction. Exploring the eighteen chapters of the novel and using the famous structuring principle of Homer’s Odyssey as our guide, Daniel Mulhall releases Ulysses from its reputation of impenetrability, and shows us the pleasure it can offer us as readers.
DANIEL MULHALL was born in Waterford. He has spent more than 40 years in Ireland’s diplomatic service, and is currently Ireland’s ambassador in the United States. He has written and lectured around the world on the subject of Irish literature, and in particular the work of James Joyce, and has worked tirelessly throughout his career to further the impact and reach of Irish writing around the world.
@DanMulhall
“I have always seen our literature as a national treasure and no Irish book is more important to James Joyce’s Ulysses. To mark the centenary of its publication in 1922, Ulysses: A Reader’s Odyssey seeks to shed new light on Joyce’s masterwork. I approach Ulysses through the lens of my own experience, having spent four decades representing Ireland internationally and talking lots about our literature.”
Praise for ‘Ulysses: A Reader’s Odyssey’:
“Powerfully, [Mulhall] argues that Joyce and Ireland for him are indissociable and that he retains a burning relevance today.”
“...an excellent guide through daunting terrain.”
“Ambassador Mulhall cleverly decodes all 18 episodes of the novel, providing personal and funny insights that contextualize and illuminate Joyce’s text, making you want to pick up “Ulysses” again.”
“...releases the great masterpiece from its reputation of impentrability. An affectionate, accessible tribute.”
“An informed, enjoyable guide, it homes in on Ulysses’ emotional core […] A convivial companion to help navigate Joyce’s masterpiece.”
“Never has a visit to the attic proven so educational.”
“This book is a delightful, chatty introduction to the wonderful world of James Joyce’s Ulysses”
“James Joyce’s magnus opus remains in need of chaperones. This is certainly one of the better ones available — highly readable, personable and well researched.”
“I can take heart from Dan Mulhall, Ireland’s ambassador to the US, whose Ulysses: A Reader’s Odyssey is just published. He takes a practical approach: if some bits of the book prove just too baffling, simply bin them and skip on a few pages.”
“Mulhall brings a historian’s eye to Joyce’s text, rather than that of a literary critic, and he writes about Ulysses with exuberance and evident enjoyment.”
Praise for Dan Mulhall:
“Daniel Mulhall has engaged audiences globally with his love of Irish literature, which he reads with scholarly insight, and shares with public passion. A public intellectual in the true sense, Mulhall reads Joyce with the experience of a lifetime representing Ireland in a modern world that Irish literature helped to shape.”
“Dan Mulhall’s account of his own journey with Ulysses takes the mystery out of finding your way through Joyce’s great novel. Dan’s lively and informative prose makes reading Ulysses the enjoyable experience Joyce intended.”
Gratefully supported by the Arts Council of Ireland
