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  • Ulysses

  • Penguin Classics
  • By: James Joyce
  • Narrated by: Patrick Gibson
  • Length: 32 hrs and 38 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (19 ratings)

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Ulysses

By: James Joyce
Narrated by: Patrick Gibson
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

This Penguin Classic is performed by Patrick Gibson, known for his roles in The OA, The Tudors and The Passing Bells. This definitive recording includes an introduction by Declan Kiberd

Following the events of one single day in Dublin, the 16th June 1904, and what happens to the characters Stephen Dedalus, Leopold Bloom and his wife Molly, Ulysses, is a monument to the human condition. It has survived censorship, controversy and legal action, and even been deemed blasphemous, but remains an undisputed modernist classic: ceaselessly inventive, garrulous, funny, sorrowful, vulgar, lyrical and ultimately redemptive. It confirms Joyce's belief that literature 'is the eternal affirmation of the spirit of man'.

Public Domain (P)2019 Penguin Audio
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Critic reviews

"Everybody knows now that Ulysses is the greatest novel of the century." (Anthony Burgess, Observer)

"The most important expression which the present age has found; it is a book to which we are all indebted, and from which none of us can escape." (T. S. Eliot)

"Intoxicating...a towering work, in its word play surpassing even Shakespeare." (Guardian)

What listeners say about Ulysses

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Brilliantly read

I think if you're going to hack your way through 'Ullysses' this wonderful reading by Patrick Gibson is the way to do it. I don't think I would have reached the end of 'Ulysses' if I had to read it in print.

If you really want to appreciate the significance of this classic you should also read 'The Most Dangerous Book: The Battle for James Joyce’s Ulysses' by Kevin Birmingham

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Respect!

What a feat this was for the reader, Patrick, and presumably a team of people supporting him. For one person to read all the different styles in the different ‘Episodes’ of this mammoth book is so impressive, and to keep the reader interested throughout is even more so. I’ll miss Patrick’s voice - maybe I’ll start again from the beginning!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

What a magnificent achievement

This performance absolutely lifts this amazing text. Molly’s final chapter felt electric. Dare to try Ulysses and if you are going to… do it this way.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

the narrator

an incredibly difficult text that is made easier to fathom by the narrator. it was always my aim and ambition to read this novel but never lasted more than a hundred pages. listening, made it palatable and the narrators ability to emphasize and wax and wane in sync with the text made it a joy to listen to and can make a non native appreciate the nuances, subtleties and harness of this text almost unputdownable - supplementing it with Ulyssesguide.com or sparknotes is a good idea.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Utter drivel

I had to give up during chapter 4, simply couldn’t take it any longer. The wording is beautiful however there is absolutely no story whatsoever. Unrelated ramblings would be the only way to describe it. Woeful!! I gave it two overall simply because the narrator was very good.

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1 person found this helpful