Maxine answers “I have tried reading this book twice but...”

Deepak Pitaliya asked this question about Ulysses:

I have tried reading this book twice but could not get past 30-40 pages. I even read Iliad and Odyssey before starting this book as the book is supposed to draw some parallel with Odyssey. Is it readable?

Maxine No, it is not readable, and it is not readable on many levels. If you enjoy being bombarded by dizzying flights of ideas hysterically leaping from one…moreNo, it is not readable, and it is not readable on many levels. If you enjoy being bombarded by dizzying flights of ideas hysterically leaping from one image to another until you've forgotten what the original concept was, then by all means, soldier on. But--not unless you enjoy being sickened.

After breaking my promise that I would not read beyond one more description of anything as "snot green", or the cataloging of the contents of a used handkerchief, I did continue. in the effort to find some redemptive value to a supposedly "profoundly great" work of modern literature, slogging on through the bloated corpse of a dead dog in (yes) snot green water, followed soon after by the arrival of a bloated human corpse washing ashore as small silver fish, fat with feeding on said bloated corpse emerge from his open fly. This led to musings of rotting teeth and discussions of urination. I finally quit in disgust as the man witnessing all of these sights wipes snot he'd just removed from his nose "carefully" on a board to dry. All of this before the end of Episode 3!

If this is example of great modern literature, then I'm content to let my tastes run to the plebeian. (less)

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Maxine Thank you . I appreciate both your answer, and your diligent study, but will continue with my original conclusion.
Jul 29, 2020 05:55PM

Frank D You have to dedicate yourself to reading this book. I did, and it finally opened to me. It's not a weekend read. Get a copy of Harry Blamires' New Blo ...more
Jul 29, 2020 06:19PM

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