Palmer celebrates centennial bloom

PALMER -- On the morning of June 16, 1904, Leopold Bloom greeted a hot Dublin summer day with a breakfast of pork kidney, bread and butter and tea, a seemingly simple beginning to a seemingly simple day.

Yet Bloom was no ordinary Dubliner, and his tale, both in its unfolding and in its recollection 100 years later by legions of fans, would prove anything but traditional. For Bloom was not a man of flesh and bone, but a literary creation, the main character of James Joyce's landmark novel "Ulysses", and his legacy thus lives longer than any remnant of living flesh or mortal bone.

Today, aficionados, celebrants and miscellaneous fans of Joyce's work worldwide recognize June 16, or Bloomsday, as a commemoration of Joyce's talent and widespread influence.

This year's Bloomsday is of special significance since it marks the 100th anniversary of the day on which "Ulysses" takes place.

"Ulysses", source of both joy and scandal for millions of readers, was banned in the United States after its publication in 1922. However, a U.S. District Court decision in 1933, one of the most famous and controversial trials in the history of literature, made the book publicly available again.

Like any groundbreaking author, Joyce's effect is anything but local. The phantasmagoric realm he describes above could as well be the perpetual twilight of an Alaska evening; wherever his books are enjoyed, his admirers find analogues with his work in their own environs, find mirrors of his characters' composition in their own lives and their own modern world.

One such admirer in the city of Palmer showed his appreciation for Joyce's work by holding a James Joyce look-alike contest on Bloomsday.

David Cheezem, owner of Fireside Books in Palmer and a longtime fan of Joyce, gathered together other lovers of the Irish author's prose in his dowtown store on the 100th Bloomsday for a celebration of the man and his work.

Contestants, in addition to being asked to dress the part, were prepared to perform dramatic readings from "Ulysses" or other Joycean works, as well as perform impromptu writing in the Joycean style.

This same style has created untold difficulties for readers and prospective readers of Joyce's works, which sometimes gain the reputation of almost hopeless impenetrability.

Density of both obscure and invented words, endless references to both classic and obscure literature and a highly untraditional narrative voice have made these books a true challenge for the casual reader.

Cheezem himself is an admitted neophyte. "I want to make it really clear that I'm not a Joyce expert," he said.

"Ulysses", which has something of a reputation as the book that everyone wants to read but never gets around to, is also a rather steep climb for Cheezem himself. However, he said the book's merits far outweigh its liabilities. "Though I haven't finished it yet, whenever I put it down I know I'm going to come back to it," he said.

However, Cheezem said this lack of comprehension is not necessarily a liability. "It is difficult [to read the book]," he said, "but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy it. There is humor and sadness, and some really musical language in there."

At the Wednesday look-alike contest, Kohl Kitchin took home first prize: a copy of "The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary with CD-ROM," a copy of "Yes I Said Yes I Will Yes: A Celebration of James Joyce, Ulysses, and 100 Years of Bloomsday," edited by Nola Tully, and a $30 gift certificate from Fireside.

The celebration also involved a melodramatic re-enactment of the tumultuous publication history of "Ulysses", dramatic readings from "Ulysses", an Irish fiddle interlude and a cake bearing the author's likeness, created by Verda's Cakes and Things.

The monumental day was accompanied by a mayoral proclamation from the city of Palmer noting the significance of Joyce's accomplishments.

This proclamation, which called "Ulysses" a "cornerstone of modern literature," was presented by Deputy Mayor Tony Pippel at the June 8 meeting of the Palmer City Council.

Contact Daniel Spoth at daniel.spoth@frontiersman.com.