Audiobook · read by volunteers
Dubliners
James Joyce (1882–1941)
Read by Richard Wallis, Bellona Times, Julie VW, Sofia Laureano, Bruce Pirie, Bob Sherman, Carol Stripling, ontheroad, Elizabeth Klett, Hugh McGuire · 17 chapters · 6 h 57
About the book
Dublin at the turn of the twentieth century comes alive in these stories, from the boys who skip school in search of adventure to the clerks, teachers, singers and drinkers who fill the streets and pubs. James Joyce wrote about the city he knew with unflinching honesty and a close ear for how people talk, and each story captures a moment when a life stops, turns or finds itself stuck. Quiet, precise and often devastating, Dubliners is among the great collections of short fiction in English. Seventeen chapters and seven hours, read by LibriVox volunteers, include The Sisters, An Encounter, Araby and Eveline, among others. A perfect first step into Joyce. Short, concentrated and unforgettable, these stories reward both a first listening and many returns, and they offer a portrait of a city that is also a portrait of its people.
Introduction
James Joyce (1882 to 1941) was born in Dublin and spent most of his adult life abroad, yet the city remained at the center of his imagination. Dubliners, published in 1914, was his first major work of prose fiction, and it took many years to find a publisher because of its frankness. The stories are arranged to follow a progression, from childhood through adolescence and maturity to public life, so that the book can be read as a portrait of a city and its inhabitants.
Joyce described his method as a scrupulous meanness, but what the reader finds is a mixture of precision and sympathy. The stories are short and apparently simple: a boy hears of the death of a priest, a girl considers leaving home, a party takes place, a man returns from work. Yet each is built around a small revelation, a moment when a character glimpses the shape of his or her life.
The recording has seventeen chapters and a total length of about seven hours. It is read by LibriVox volunteers, in a succession of different voices. It is a fine place to begin for anyone who has been put off by Joyce's reputation for difficulty, since the stories are accessible and moving. For those who already know Ulysses, they offer a look at the beginnings of a great career. Because each story is complete in itself, the collection can be heard in any order, and a single story makes a good introduction. The language is clear and the details are exact, so the Dublin of 1900 comes alive with its streets, its songs and its silences. Many readers consider the final story the finest in the book.
Public domain
James Joyce died in 1941: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text