Bloomsday: A city on the page

“Every life is many days, day after day. We walk through ourselves, meeting robbers, ghosts, giants, old men, young men, wives, widows, brothers-in-love, but always meeting ourselves.” - Ulysses by James Joyce

When I first read Joyce I had a map of Dublin open next to me. Stephen stood on Dollymount Bridge as his heart cried “On! On!” and I needed to know exactly where that was. Joyce has made many other readers around the world feel like they knew Dublin, had walked through and met the “robbers, ghosts, giants, old men, young men, wives, widows, brothers-in-love”. He had brought a city, poetically and complexly, to life on a page – as our own writers do with Joburg.

Ivan Vladislavić has been referred to as a flâneur in Joburg. From his famous physical and literary exploration of the city in Portrait with Keys to its recurrence in his fiction, Vladislavić’s interest in urban spaces (particularly our city) has been well documented.

“The boundaries of Johannesburg are drifting away, sliding over pristine ridges and valleys, lodging in tenuous places, slipping again. At its edges, where the city fades momentarily into the veld, unimaginable new atmospheres evolve…” - The Exploded View by Ivan Vladislavic

Terry-Ann Adams and Ivan Vladislavić will discuss depicting urban spaces and cities at Bridge Books Barbican on Saturday. (Bridge Books)

Buy here

Terry-Ann Adams’ writing brings a different voice to these explorative depictions of a place. Their acclaimed novel Those Who Live in Cages invites readers into the world of five women trying to live another day in Eldorado Park. Both Those Who Live in Cages and White Chalk, Adams’ short story collection, walk through community, meeting others and meeting ourselves.

“I am not a girl, and I told my mother this when she took me to that stupid wedding dress shop in Rissik Street.” - Matric Dance from White Chalk: Stories by Terry-Ann Adams

Buy here

The event will also include readings from Ulysses in English, Dutch, French, German, and isiZulu. Anthony Akerman will speak about reading Ulysses in South Africa.

Afterwards, we’ll have drinks and a harvest table in the newly renovated Barbican penthouse to watch the sunset over the city.

EVENT DETAILS