I started reading Ulysses in July 2011, and after various sincere attempts to get into a routine of fitting this book around my daily life, I lost my enthusiasm halfway in. However, I have carried it on my commute more often than not, and finally made it to the end of the book.That doesn’t mean this book is now finished and ready to send off to the chrity shop.
This is the first book I’ve ever read where finishing the book is actually the beginning. My intention was to read it free of any critical influence, study guides and chapter-by-chapter summaries, and I’m glad I did. Here’s my advice for anyone who wants to read James Joyce’s seven-year effort (and a quick note to remind you that 2012 is the year it becomes property of the public domain):
* Don’t be disillusioned if there’s vast swathes of prose you can’t make head. or tail of. Just continue to let the sounds of the words splash around your mind, looking up problematic words where possible, but the important thing is not to STOP. I honestly believe the first reading of Ulysses should be approached like a wise relative – you may not understand everything they are try to tell you but that doesn’t mean you should therefore turn your back on them! And what is a mystery today will almost certainly reveal itself on a second read, or when you finally get round to analysing the book itself.
* Don’t set yourself reading goals by page. One page of Ulysses might take you two minutes, another much, much more! Instead, view the task of reading Ulysses as an evolving activity that should not be made into a competition and rite of passage!
* Listen to recordings of James Joyce’s voice to imagine how the book’s if vocabulary and nuances would sound if uttered from the man itself. I found a YouTube clip of Joyce reading aloud.
* Read other book simultaneously. I made the mistake of refusing to read other prose while reading Ulysses, but this is setting yourself up to be very frustrated! Inevitably, There might be periods of days or weeks when the thought of re-opening Ulysses makes you shiver in fear, and if you don’t have a less challenging book to fall back on in those times of despair you will be novel-less, and I can think of nothing worse on the world!
* I didn’t do this myself, but I’ve heard watching the film can be a nice way of introducing you to the main story arc without interfering with your own opinion-forming of the book itself.
* If you haven’t already, download a Dictionary app to your smartphone if you can! This is invaluable when reading Ulysses on the go, although some words should be read firmly tongue-in-cheek, as Joyce has the wondrous habit of inventing quirky words and conjoining separate words into a new one.
I only actually found out about Frank Delaney’s episodic podcasts Re: Joyce AFTER I’d finished the book, but I really think they will help crack through the fear that prevents a large majority of people ever even turning to the first page. No-one should miss out on attempting this novel just because of the hype and critical minefield that surrounds it, and Delaney’s voice calms the nerves as he demystifies the prose.
I think I’ll write another review once I’ve really read into the novel a bit more, as I feel like I have only just scraped the surface and there’s a lot more rewarding reading to come.
