Bloomsday will soon be upon us — the annual June 16th celebration where James Joyce’s Ulysses breaks out of the classroom and hits the bars. And where better to celebrate this hallowed literary tome than at one of State Street’s favorite watering holes, The James Joyce pub.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the publication of Joyce’s famously formerly-banned book, a revered 1922 novel that follows the stream of consciousness thoughts of the main character Leopold Bloom on June 16, 1904 (hence the name “Bloomsday”). Event organizers James Buckley Jr. and D.J. Palladino — both local authors and bonafide literary fanboys — have lots of fun on tap for all who want to imbibe in the free festivities.
Coffee with a Black Guy founder and Santa Barbara mayoral candidate James Joyce III will be on hand to read select passages from Ulysses, along with Buckley and Palladino. Other readers include Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s Roger Durling, former Santa Barbara Poet Laureate Perie Longo, Novelist and SBCC Professor Emerita Jinny Webber, Historian and Professor Jay Carlander, and Actor Leslie Story.