Best Joyce, James
In his remarkable tour de force, Joyce catalogues one day - June 16, 1904 - in immense detail as Leopold Bloom wanders through Dublin, talking, observing, musing and always remembering Molly, his passionate, wayward wife. -The final episode, which also uses the stream of consciousness technique seen in Episode 3, consists of Molly Bloom's Soliloquy: eight enormous sentences (without punctuation) written from the viewpoint of Bloom's wife. The concluding period following the final words of her reverie is one of only three punctuation marks in the chapter, the others being after the fourth and eighth "sentences." A confession: despite many attempts, I have never finished Joyce's novel to end all novels (I usually trip up during the 'Oxen of the Sun' episode). Having dipped into the excellent but edited 'dramatisation' by Stephen Rea and Sinead Cusack, I went for this unabridged, 27-hour reading by Irish actor Jim Norton.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The difficulty with this read is that the reader is often simply ‘listening’ to the protagonists thoughts presented in stream-of-consciousness style, while Joyce is constantly ‘playing’ with the language; English, French, Latin even Italian, and he plays with the characters and other authors, even his own prior work, and philosophies are explored, and all-the-while the story is an allegory of Homer’s (the Greek, not Simpson) “Odyssey”. If I may modify the definition of 4-stars from “I Like it” to “I Admire it”, then I can make the rating system work for this read. The storyline is a walk through Dublin on the day of June 16th, 1904 where we follow the separate strolls of Stephen Dedalus, a budding poet and Leopold Bloom, an advertisement salesman, till they meet in the evening, go on a drunk together then separate onto their own paths again."
"Keep in mind Ulysses is not narrative, it is stream of consciousness and atomic word play."
"This is the definitive edition for all James Joyce lovers, although I recommend the purchase of Don GIfford's annotated notes to go along with it for any would be scholars."
"I found it best to read this with a set of lectures on the book from "Great Courses" and at times, to use WhisperSync to have it read to me while I read along."
"This is not a book for casual reading, but if you can pay attention, read carefully, and look a few things up, you will be rewarded by being in touch with Joyce's phenomenal intelligence and great gifts."
"I loved Ulysses when I was in my early twenties."
"Joyce's writing is notoriously difficult."
2 Ulysses
The young poet Stephen has been recalled from Paris to Dublin to be at his mother's deathbed. ""After listening to a sample tape, I'm a convert, Donnelly and Healy-Louie took that deme prose and made it sparkle.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"The difficulty with this read is that the reader is often simply ‘listening’ to the protagonists thoughts presented in stream-of-consciousness style, while Joyce is constantly ‘playing’ with the language; English, French, Latin even Italian, and he plays with the characters and other authors, even his own prior work, and philosophies are explored, and all-the-while the story is an allegory of Homer’s (the Greek, not Simpson) “Odyssey”. If I may modify the definition of 4-stars from “I Like it” to “I Admire it”, then I can make the rating system work for this read. The storyline is a walk through Dublin on the day of June 16th, 1904 where we follow the separate strolls of Stephen Dedalus, a budding poet and Leopold Bloom, an advertisement salesman, till they meet in the evening, go on a drunk together then separate onto their own paths again."
"Keep in mind Ulysses is not narrative, it is stream of consciousness and atomic word play."
"This is the definitive edition for all James Joyce lovers, although I recommend the purchase of Don GIfford's annotated notes to go along with it for any would be scholars."
"I found it best to read this with a set of lectures on the book from "Great Courses" and at times, to use WhisperSync to have it read to me while I read along."
"This is not a book for casual reading, but if you can pay attention, read carefully, and look a few things up, you will be rewarded by being in touch with Joyce's phenomenal intelligence and great gifts."
"I loved Ulysses when I was in my early twenties."
"Joyce's writing is notoriously difficult."
These vivid, tightly focused observations about the life of Dublin's poorer classes originally made publishers uneasy: the stories contain unconventional themes and coarse language, and they mention actual people and places. James Joyce (1882-1941) was an Irish novelist and poet.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Truly well written."
"who would know better than james joyce?"
"The book itself is great quality- Norton Critical Editions provide excellent footnotes that are especially helpful for interpreting local Dublin slang."
"Great author, great collection of stories!"
"Classic stories."
"Of course the writing is good; just didn't enjoy the stories!"
"Can't go wrong with the price tag, but was pleasantly surprised when it was delivered way ahead of schedule!"
"Book had blank pages."
Best Jordan, Robert
But working from notes and partials left by Jordan, established fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson stepped in to complete the masterwork. Judkins previously worked on shows such as ABC’s “Agents of SHIELD,” the Netflix series “Hemlock Grove,” and the NBC series “Chuck.” Red Eagle partners Rick Selvage and Larry Mondragon will executive produce along with Radar’s Ted Field and Mike Weber. The Wheel of Time ® New Spring: The Novel #1 The Eye of the World #2 The Great Hunt #3 The Dragon Reborn #4 The Shadow Rising #5 The Fires of Heaven #6 Lord of Chaos #7 A Crown of Swords #8 The Path of Daggers #9 Winter's Heart #10 Crossroads of Twilight #11 Knife of Dreams. By Robert Jordan, Harriet McDougal, Alan Romanczuk, and Maria Simons The Wheel of Time Companion. “Michael Kramer and Kate Reading have been the masters of the Wheel of Time series from the very first book to this fourteenth, and final, book…They present the unfolding of the many themes with infinite patience and consistent tones of engagement with the characters and events.” ― AudioFile Magazine, Earphones Award winner.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"Third - this is the most incredible story I have ever read."
"I am immensely impressed with how well Brandon Sanderson completed the series for Robert Jordan, particularly with how he channeled Mr. Jordan’s voice and vision. So, yes, if you’ve read or are reading the others in this series, finish them up and read this one. I highly recommend this entire series for fans of epic fantasy, particularly for folks who want a series that’s not only incredible on the first read through, but utterly re-readable with something new in every reading."
"23 years it took to complete this series and the last 3 books had to be written by a hand-picked successor to Robert Jordan since he died in September 2007 (Real name was James Oliver Rigney, Jr.) I have not reviewed the books on an individual basis except for a couple instances. I was a little bit put down when I first read this book but having read the entire series many times, I really think it concluded in a way that Mr. Jordan wanted. If you were unaware of Robert Jordan's death and Brandon Sanderson taking over, you would think the original author had completed the entire series."
"So many loose ends and unanswered questions."
"After so many years I've read the last book of the Wheel of Time series. I recommend it to every one of you that love to read fantasy and even to those who just love to read."
"Your ending will very likely be better or at least very close to the ending in the book, and you won't have wasted hours or days (or months in my case) reading it."
Best Jenkins, Jerry
Only one series will take you to the end of the world as you explore eternal truth: the best-selling Left Behind series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"It is one very long book file that includes all 12 titles of the series from Left Behind through Glorious Appearing. It says the title is lendable, but it can't be broken into parts, so whoever you lend it to will have to read all 12 books in 14 days."
"And those who find their faith, will find the glory of God and the heart of Christ."
"if you want a really good series that takes you on a journey the the Revelation of the Bible, then this is it."
"Great Series!"
"The novel series was an enjoyable way to see one's interpretation of the Bible's prophetic end times."
"Can't wait to finish reading the entire series!"
"I have read all these books and would recommend them to anyone who does not know the Lord to read them and check the Bible with the scriptures noted."
"Great read, engaging, thrilling, a plot line that teaches while entertaining throughout the series."