The Book About Everything

<p><b>To celebrate the centenary of the publication of <i>Ulysses</i>, the most important literary work of the twentieth century, eighteen artists, writers and thinkers respond to an episode each of the great modernist text. </b></p><p>Each essayist is an expert in one of the subjects treated in the novel, but what brings them together is a common love of <i>Ulysses</i>.</p><p><b>Joseph O'Connor</b> considers the music-saturated Sirens episode and <b>David McWilliams</b> writes about the bigotry and violence of nationalism on display in Cyclops. Irish obstetrician <b>Rhona Mahony</b> responds to Oxen and the Sun, set in a maternity hospital, journalist <b>Lara Marlowe</b> examines the Aeolus episode, which takes place in a newspaper office, and Irish philosopher <b>Richard Kearney</b> reflects on the erudite musings of Stephen Dedalus as he walks along Sandymount strand.</p><p><i>The Book About Everything</i> counters the perception of <i>Ulysses</i> as the sole preserve of academics and instead showcases readers' responses to the book. It is a vivid, even eccentric collection, filled with life and Joycean spirit.</p>