I think few people would argue with the assertion that James Joyce was a little nutso. Most geniuses are, right? This "insane but brilliant" quality is never so clear as in "Ulysses." A story of three Dubliners based loosely on characters from Homer's "The Odyssey," this novel is a wonderland of archaic references, ancient languages, witty puns, and double entendres. Reading it is less about experiencing the telling of a story and more about being bombarded by humor and confusing allusions until you feel like you're in another world.

The main issue I have with Joyce is that of readability. I agree that he's a genius, that his writing is original (though certainly has stylistic contemporaries in the context of the modernist movement) and a sort of journey through the complexities of humor thought and written expression. I would never read his novels for pure fun, however, or to be surrounded by the beauty of the English language. His novels are like crosswords- I do them to be challenged and to learn something, not to relax or lose myself in a stoey. Joyce makes me laugh, scratch my head in confusion, and go to sleep trying to conjugate Latin.