06/16/2020
Today is Bloomsday, where the more literary-minded drunks among us gather to read passages from James Joyce's most celebrated novel Ulysses and, well, drink. The novel is set in one day - June 16, 1904 - in the life of the protagonist, Leopold Bloom.
As our contribution to Bloomsday, we offer a brief excerpt from one of our books, Lower than Angels: A Memoir of War and Peace written by the pseudonymous W. W. Windstaff:
"No matter where the Americans came from, you could usually sell them a volume of Joyce. Most were not literary, but had heard it was a 'dirty' book. You had to split with a reporter on the Herald who could do the James Joyce signature with a real feel, and even add a personal message. Of course Joyce, if you caught him before he got plastered on white wine, he'd be happy to sign one of the blue-covered books. He sang too, but I couldn't make any money on that."
To read more on the origins of Bloomsday, go to http://www.completeulysses.com/about/origins-of-bloomsday/. And if you'd like to learn more about Lower than Angels, check out https://bartlebythepublisher.com/catalog/lower-than-angels-2/
When he wrote this memoir over sixty years ago, the author planned a privately printed edition as gifts for his friends. He chose a pseudonym, W.W. Windstaff, to avoid embarrassing his socially prominent family. His true identity remains a secret. In a unique style, Lower than Angels captures the...
