In this comprehensive account of the great modern novelist, "James Joyce" addresses the author entire corpus, from his earliest beginnings to his mature masterpieces. the book provides detailed textual analysis of each of his major works. Lee Spinks discusses the biographical, historical, political, and social contexts that inform Joyce's writing and multiple strands of criticism that have been proposed over the last eighty years. The book's combination of close reading and critical breadth makes it an ideal companion for both undergraduate students and advanced scholars.