Kevin Birmingham

"Ulysses" is regarded as genius, smut, babble, brilliance, and blasphemy. The ramblings of a sick mind, and the redefining of what a novel can be.

"The Most Dangerous Book" is much more than the story of the controversies that surrounded Joyce's seminal novel. Aside from the attempts to censor the book in America and Europe, Birmingham also does a remarkable job of capturing the story of Joyce's personal and writing life from his youngest days in Dublin to his adult life abroad. For me, the most intriguing aspects of the book were how The Comstock Law affected "Ulysses" here in the States, the polarizing reaction Joyce's writing received from other popular writers of his era, the unlikely allies who fiercely supported Joyce (artistically and financially), and Joyce's horrific vision issues, which led to medieval attempts to ease his suffering and stave off blindness. Birmingham also does a fine job explaining Joyce's earlier works in context to the culture and the times.

I'm just now starting "Ulysses". I'm a chapter or two in, and from what I'm told, I'll hit some roadblocks that rival the Great Wall of China. However, now I have a greater appreciation for Joyce's journey to write and publish his novel, and am better prepared for the surreal, profane ride ahead of me.

This is the story of a book, the audacious man who wrote it, and the decades of furor it created. Well-researched, filled with humor, and a solid, accessible bridge to the world of Joyce.… (mehr)