Ulysses, Volume 1: Episodes 1-3

I have never read Ulysses, having been scared off by a conversation during college. I figured I'd give it a try for three chapters 35 years later. I really enjoyed the narration, but I was having a little trouble following, so I decided to listen again, only with the text as well, which is available online. And I kept a tab to dictionary.com open at all times. And then I looked up some sites that give an analysis of the book, and I can't wait to get the next installment. I think one of the greatest books in the English language should be approached differntly from .... Take your pick.

This recording of Ulysses is simply excellent. The male narrator reads exceptionally well what, as you'll see, is an extremely difficult text to read aloud (particularly the later chapters). He varies his voice in different ways for the many, many different characters, as well as imitates lots of different Irish, English, and American accents. Simply amazing! The female narrator who reads Molly's chapter is likewise fantastic -- particularly for a chapter of 50 or so pages which is printed with only 8 sentence breaks!

Ulysses is a demanding novel but definitely a rewarding one. This recording really makes it quite accessible. Some of the chapters, actually, are more compelling when heard rather than read from the page. As a first-time reader, I found it very helpful to go one chapter at a time, reading some outside material (like sparknote.com or cliffsnote.com) to help me as I went. TIP: get a copy of Joyce's "schema" for Ulysses -- it's a list of symbols, colors, settings, etc. for each chapter -- and is extremely helpful. Try googling it or looking in Don Gifford's *Ulysses Annotated* (schema items listed at the beginning of the notes for each chapter).

Enjoy!

Outstanding lyrical and dramatic presentation of the first section of Ulysses. Jim Norton properly loses himself as narrator in the remarkable peripatetic flow through the various "realities". My understanding of and affection for the characters, especially Stephen Dedalus and Buck Mulligan, grew while listening to this reading. And, I was treated to a few laugh out loud moments.

Everyone knows that Ulysses is supposed to be impossible to read, it is, I've tried! Here is the answer. This version is beautifully narrated, almost acted, as Jim Norton takes on many different voices. The chatacters really come to life. The story is still difficult to follow but it is easy to appreciate the writing and just listen. In some ways it is like listening to good music, you can just lie back and appreciate it without needing to follow the story. I recommend it.

I was always nervous about trying to read Ulysses. Would I understand it? Could I wade through it? And then someone said to me "you know, it's a very funny book, which is really wonderful when read out loud." So I thought I'd give it a try. And it is wonderful - much better than I had expected. Jim Norton does an incredible job with the accents and the snatches of song and the humor. I admit to not understanding a certain amount of it, but I don't care. It's like listening to music - the language is so beautiful and Joyce has so much fun with sounds, I hardly care what it's about. I just love it.

This is one of the best readings I've heard of any book. Characters sound like characters, not caricatures. To the listener that asked about the length - yes it's 1h54m. It's backwards in terms of "getting what you pay for" but makes sense in terms of the structure of the novel. Vol. 1 is is Stephen Dedalus section, Vol. 2 (the bulk of the novel) is the Leopold Bloom Section, and Vol. 3 is the Molly Bloom section. Think of it as 3 credits ($75) for one of the greatest novels in the English language--unabridged.

A fascinating, enigmatic novel, filled with elaborate narrative and extended verbal jests to keep you on your toes. Great narration by both readers. Molly Bloom?s monologue is especially well read by Marcella Riordan. The book is also somewhat blasphemous and quite lewd, although covered over by academic terms and many words that you have to look up in a dictionary. I immersed myself in the reading the first time through, then listened to Professor Heffernan?s 24 half-hour lectures (from The Teaching Company), then listened again with the text in front of me. I found the book very amusing, when read to me, and worth the time and effort. Bravo again to the narrators. Up, U.P., Up!

This is incredibly well made, and the voice acting is excellent.

You should be aware that this is only the first 3 chapters from Ulysses, and therefore it is a "sampler" for the work as a whole. You will have to purchase the other two sets to have the full and unabridged reading of Ulysses, which I currently listening to. In fact, I found that this presentation is easier to follow than the book itself. The strange "free flowing thought" that Joyce uses lends itself exceptionally well to narration and voice acting. Perhaps moreso than any other audiobook I have yet listened to.

This review is just to point out that the listed length of this recording is an hour and 54 minutes, which I don't believe. If it is accurate, I certainly won't spend the money. But it it's a typo,please fix it.

Ulysses by James Joyce is universally acknowledged as a difficult read on paper. There's no doubt it's never going to be an easy book but when Jim Norton speaks, he brings such a wide range of characters to life it's like being in Dublin. You may not understand why they're saying what they're saying but at least you can hear the different speakers. Mr Norton has incredible diction, rhythm and control. He immerses the listener into the world of Joyce. I commend Mr Norton for a fantastic performance. He's given me an entree into a detailed impressionistic portrait of a particular time, a city and its citizens. I've listened to part one twice already and can only marvel that Jim Norton has been able to delineate the characters so clearly. Wait till you hear part two and thank goodness Jim's there for us as Joyce just keeps on piling it on!