James Joyce's Dubliners is a collection of short stories about the lives of the people of Dublin around the turn of the century. Each story describes a small but significant moment of crisis or revelation in the life of a particular Dubliner, sympathetically but always with stark honesty. Many of the characters are desperate to escape the confines of their humdrum lives, though those that have the opportunity to do so seem unable to take it. This book holds none of the difficulties of Joyce's later novels, such as Ulysses, yet in its way it is just as radical. These stories introduce us to the city which fed Joyce's entire creative output, and to many of the characters who made it such a well of literary inspiration.
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"Dubliners is not a collection of happily-ever-after tales. None of the wide arrays of characters achieved their ideal fantasies or remotely reach success. Instead, the citizens are oppressed most of the time and they struggle through their lives routinely. At first, I thought Joyce's writing to be fairly simple and clean; third-person reports of people's everyday lives. Many stories deal with broad themes and universal motifs (paralysis, Dublin, repetition) which link them all together. As I read on, I noticed each preceding story corresponded to highlight the heightening complexity in the next chapter. There was this underlying dark tone to each chapter that just seemed to mock the characters about their elusive happiness. They kept getting bashed from beginning to end and no matter how they tried, they couldn't reach a greater life of meaning. Dubliners practically had every morose depressing element that I dislike to read; then why the hell do I like this book? I thought this book perverse when I read the chapter titled: An Encounter. I thought it mind-thwarting when the boy practically did nothing in 'Araby'. It was shocking and I felt outrageous after completing 'Counterparts'. Chapter 12 and 13 gave me a sense of pointlessness. And disturbingly, 'Clay' had me invested in Maria's next stage of life. Even to me, it makes no sense what I'm talking about and all I know is that James Joyce has serious talent. Maybe that's part of the reason he also has his own holiday named Bloomsday in Ireland." — Anne (4 out of 5 stars)
"Dubliners is not a collection of happily-ever-after tales. None of the wide arrays of characters achieved their ideal fantasies or remotely reach success. Instead, the citizens are oppressed most of the time and they struggle through their lives routinely. At first, I thought Joyce's writing to be fairly simple and clean; third-person reports of people's everyday lives. Many stories deal with broad themes and universal motifs (paralysis, Dublin, repetition) which link them all together. As I read on, I noticed each preceding story corresponded to highlight the heightening complexity in the next chapter. There was this underlying dark tone to each chapter that just seemed to mock the characters about their elusive happiness. They kept getting bashed from beginning to end and no matter how they tried, they couldn't reach a greater life of meaning. Dubliners practically had every morose depressing element that I dislike to read; then why the hell do I like this book? I thought this book perverse when I read the chapter titled: An Encounter. I thought it mind-thwarting when the boy practically did nothing in 'Araby'. It was shocking and I felt outrageous after completing 'Counterparts'. Chapter 12 and 13 gave me a sense of pointlessness. And disturbingly, 'Clay' had me invested in Maria's next stage of life. Even to me, it makes no sense what I'm talking about and all I know is that James Joyce has serious talent. Maybe that's part of the reason he also has his own holiday named Bloomsday in Ireland."
" Excellent - thoroughly enjoyed it. "
" you'd like this if you're a dubliner. "
" I did not finish the book and I cannot remember whether I was reading it in Czech or in English. "
" I'm aware that I'm super liberal with my 5-star ratings, but this one is an incredible read. It's a collection of short stories, but I highly suggest reading in the order Joyce presented them. "
" There's no way I could hope to add anything of interest concerning the text itself, but I highly recommend the Everyman's Library edition if at all possible -- intro is ridiculously extensive and a pretty good appreciation aide. "
" Very good read although the longer stories lagged. Some brilliant characterizations and beautiful language.. "
" "The Dead"-read this when you want to remember those that you have lost. "
" You don't have to be Irish to enjoy these stories,but it likely helps. "
" My favorite work of short stories in all of literature. "
" The most accessible Joyce in my opinion "
" An all time favorite of mine. I revisit this collection annually. "
" A collection of tales including The Dead. Plainly Irish, plainly Joyce. "
" So very dull with a few shining moments. I was almost bored to tears. "
" I know it may be a blasphemy to rate it with only three stars, but this is just the first time I read it, and thus have not yet got deeper into the beauty of each tale. I did like many of deep as to rate them with five, but right now, the overall impression was not completely effective meaning-wise. "
" I really enjoyed 'Mother', 'Grace', 'The Dead' and especially 'A Painful Case'. Each story was sad and beautifully worked, but I found several of them difficult to engage with. Dubliners leaves a feeling of a bleak and difficult world where sadness blankets everything. "
" For a mix of five- and one- to two- star stories, I give it three. ARABY is one of the best short stories I've ever read, THE DEAD one of the worst. "
" Very mixed feelings about this book as a whole. The Dead is one of the greatest short stories I've ever read, but most of the stories were underwhelming, even unlikeable. "
" Still as good as ever. "
" Need to re read was probably too young to appreciate it "
" Highly enjoyable, turn of the century, Irish short stories, vulgar at the time, but exceedingly tame by today's standards. Dubliner's is much easier to read than Joyce's later works, but that takes some of the magic away. "
" Wow! Sharply observed and beautifully written, the local becomes universal in these fifteen stories. "
" fictional short stories of 1904, with Irish accents. "
" It lived up to its reputation for being hard to read. It was extremely difficult to read and sometimes painful, but it was worth it. Joyce's novel is hundreds of levels above any other novel I've ever read. What he was able to do in this book was absolutely amazing. "
" Un libro ideal para personas que sufren de insomnio crónico... "
" Love Joyce's work, but Ulyssess...aargh! "
" this book requires a very open approach. it's not an easy book to read, but it's an original and kind a revolutionary way to tell the story. even thou it's the favourite, it is an important read that everyone should have a go at. "
" I'm on chapter 9 (Scylla and Charybdis) and I have to say this is by far one of the best works I have ever read. "
" One of my all time favourites "
James Joyce (1882–1941) was an Irish expatriate writer, widely considered to be one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century. He is best known for his landmark novel Ulysses and its highly controversial successor Finnegans Wake, as well as the short-story collection Dubliners and the semi-autobiographical novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.
Jim Norton, one of Ireland’s leading actors, has worked regularly on Joycean topics—and particularly Ulysses—during his long career. Born and brought up in Dublin, he spent his early acting years in Irish radio and quickly moved on to film, television, and theater. Norton won a 2007 Olivier Award and a 2008 Tony Award for The Seafarer and has appeared in The Weir, for which he was nominated for a Tony; Finian’s Rainbow; Juno and the Paycock; Dublin Carol; and Port Authority, among many others acclaimed stage productions. Film appearances include Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, Water for Elephants, Straw Dogs, Hidden Agenda, Driving Lessons, and The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Norton has also recorded many audiobooks and the complete works of James Joyce for Naxos AudioBooks, which won a Sony Award.
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