a bit too much joyce for my liking. the other essays were excellent. the joyce stuff wasnt bad but will be more interesting when i get around to reading the material. ( )

Did not review when first read

It should be read if only for the sections on James Joyce. Wilson has as much to say that is important about Joyce as just about anyone else. He read Joyce regularly and his particular brand of erudition I think suits the study of Joyce quite well. His understanding of 'synnchronicity' and 'spooky physics' makes his a perfect guide for the perplexed - I can think of a precious few who are his equal. Joyce studies is riddled and raddled and addle (pated) with time-servers of all persuasions. What's worse these literary voters are without, as a rule, a shred of a sense of Humor. Wilson may be out to lunch but there's a good chance that he knew it and that he would rather bring levity than gloom to the picnic. It was a sad day when the old guy passed away. ( )

In the four essays that share the title of the book, RAW explores the meanings and references found in James Joyce's masterpieces Ulysses and Finnegans Wake. When I read these essays in my early twenties I was quite frankly lost; this time I was able to get more out of them. I am still not ready to actually read Finnegans Wake, but I'll check again after another ten years of practice.

This would not be a good book to start with RAW on, even if you are primarily interested in Joyce. You have to be familiar with his sense of humor to recognize some of the put-ons and kung-fu ontology he introduces to an otherwise scholarly series of articles.

In addition to the Joyce essays, RAW includes the usual smorgasboard of content that makes his books so hard to write a review about (and fills the Tags box so well). Discordia and the Church of the Subgenius are directly mentioned in his Religion for the Hell of It article. Playboy's Book of Forbidden Words and the Book of the Breast, both out of print when this was written, are excerpted here, and the cutup technique is restricted to a single amusing item featuring his A Modest Enquiry put-on - a hilarious book supposedly written in the 18th century asking if God has a Willy, and exploring the idea in a very Swiftian manner.

This is probably RAW's toughest non-fiction book, because of the Joyce chapters. As usual, his topics are wide ranging and esoteric. ( )