The new translation of James Joyce’s epically complex Finnegans Wake into Chinese has become an unexpected success. The first print run of 8,000 copies sold out in just under five weeks and a second printing is on order to satisfy China’s still-increasing demand for Joyce’s book. The translation was undertaken by Dai Congrong, a professor at Fudan University in Shanghai, and … [Read more...] about New Chinese Translation of Joyce Becomes Best-seller
James Joyce
Sláinte: Dublin, City of Literature
By Edythe Preet, Columnist
Edythe Preet on the history and influence of Dublin, and James Joyce-centric recipes. When I was young, my father’s oft-repeated favorite riddle was: What is the richest country in the world? The first time he quizzed me, I wracked my brain and offered a few feeble guesses. When he could contain his mirth no longer, with a grin, a twinkle, and a nudge to my ribs he chuckled: … [Read more...] about Sláinte: Dublin, City of Literature
Roots: The Joyce Family
Though not Gaelic and sometimes found in England of non-Irish origin, Joyce may certainly be regarded as a true Irish name, and more particularly a Connacht one. The first Joyce to come to Ireland of whom there is an authentic record was Thomas de Jorse a Welshman, who in 1283 married the daughter of Turiogh O’Brien, Prince of Thomond and went with her to County Galway; there … [Read more...] about Roots: The Joyce Family
The Battle Over Ulysses
The court case that changed the way Americans read. During a first-season episode of the excellent AMC TV series Mad Men, set in the New York advertising world of the 1960s, several secretaries are seen gathered around the office water cooler, whispering. Finally, one secretly passes along a well-thumbed copy of the erotic literary classic Lady Chatterley’s Lover, which was … [Read more...] about The Battle Over Ulysses
Mother, Life, Landscape, and the Connection
Edna O’Brien returns to world of The Country Girls in The Light of Evening, with the mother-daughter relationship as the main theme. "A writer’s life is like an athlete’s life. You train every day of your life and even then it may not be as good as one had hoped,” says Edna O’Brien, who has written 20 books. Her latest, The Light of Evening, tells the story of Eleanora, a … [Read more...] about Mother, Life, Landscape, and the Connection