Rating: 
Summary: Unfortunately, a rarity
Review: James Joyce is one of the very few writers (John Steinbeck is another) who realizes what can be accomplished with the act of writing and achieves it. Certainly, some people may be lacking interest in this book, but the reason it is such a classic is because it pulls off things most books never even try to do. The simplest of events are described exactly as Joyce sees them, and he does not try to make them "interesting" or "exciting". He sees things for what they are and presents them without total honesty. Reading "Portrait" is like reading a picture, with every detail brought to light. Those who find it boring should not blame their blindess on what they cannot see.
Rating: 
Summary: Mildly annoying
Review: Stephen Dedalus grows up in Ireland in the late 1800s and attends school. He wavers between living a priestly life with all its values and restrictions, and turning his back on the priesthood. As a teenager he is troubled by the subject of sex, particularly as it relates to the concept of sin. He takes religion very seriously.I don't see why this book would ever be considered great. It is mildly annoying.
Rating:
Summary: The World Needs More Thinkers...
Review: If you are looking for mindless entertainment, go watch TV. Joyce's "Portrait" is for those who truly appreciate great literature and are willing to dwell on every word of a marvelous artwork. This (obviously) takes time, which you probably have if you are reading this recreationally. As a high school student reading this piece as a requirement, I too had a certain measure of difficulty digesting the book at parts (mostly due to time constraints.) The effect of this difficulty though, is the splendid epiphany that you can, by the novel's end, view the world through the eyes of the genius Stephen. Like Faulkner, Joyce demonstrates confusion not through description, but by confusing the reader. This artistic ability is what separates "classic" literature from forgotten "popular" novels of past eras. This may be a little more involved than "Chicken Soup," but for those of us who think about what they are reading and enjoy literary analysis, the novel is quite wonderful. You can read it on your own, but I would recommend referencing the myth of Daedalus and Icarus before reading the novel. Also, have a historical encyclopedia handy for names during the read. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Gets Better Every Time
Review: No matter how many times I read Portrait, it always fascinates me. Joyce's allusive and symbolic writing gives us a wonderful sense of the world according to Stephen Dedalus, changing as he changes. Good notes or a Joyce fan are a must for a first read-through to avoid getting "stuck" in the stream of Stephen's thoughts as others have, but the book rewards time and attention well, revealing its complex structure and Joyce's own complex conception of the world. A must-read.
Rating:
Summary: My third time through this book
Review: My first stab at this book was in preparation for my college orientation thirty plus years ago. I was impressed by the description of the Jesuit retreat, but didn't get through the whole book. The second time I read it was in 1992. I remember being enthusiastic in my reaction and preferring it to Ulysses, which I find impenetrable. Having just read it a third time, I must say I am more struck by the parts than the sum of those parts. I particularly favor the dialogue, first the Christmas dinner argument re Parnell and, secondly, Stephen's banter with peers at University College Dublin. The dialogue is brilliant, once you figure out Joyce has his own style of punctuation for it. The book requires work, hence the one-star reviews from those looking for ease of reading and entertainment. Next time I try to tackle it, I plan to use a reader's guide, unapologetically. It should be a felony to require high school and college students to read it without a guide and a guidebook. I could use both to get me through Ulysses.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Worth all five stars.
Review: James Joyce's work is obviously a great piece of literature but for today's youth it is not the best novel to recapture the desire to read. I think it's a wonderful book to study in an English course but also I found it extremely difficult for one to read out of pleasure with the exception of the die hard Joyce fans. If you have some time to kill and also have the desire to higher you're learning then I suggest this book but if you're looking for an enjoyable rainy day read look somewhere else.
Rating:
Summary: Development of the artistic temperament.
Review: A portrait of the artist.. is predominantly an auto-biographical tale of Joyce's own artistic development and sensibilities. The very poor reviews this book has received recently, are quite awful, and unsubstantiated. To say Joyce is unreadable, untenable, and desultory, is to miss the entire 20th century and modernistic importance of Joyce. The previous reviewer criticised Ulysses' change of narrative: isn't that one of the great things about the book, the revolutionary technique, and multiple viewpoint?
Rating:
Summary: Not exactly popular literature, but...
Review: Reading the reviews for this book, you'll typically get one oftwo types of people: 1) the sullen high school student which saysthe book "sucks" because it was hard to follow and/or has a boring plot 2) the elitist pedant responding to this who calls the high schoolers are idiots who just aren't "in the know" enough to appreciate this book. Though I tend to side with the #2ers, I hope to strike a happy medium. Yes, this book is boring if you look at it as a story with a plot and nothing else. No, you can't say this book is great because you didn't understand it but feel obligated to pretend that you did. This book really isn't that hard to follow, plot-wise. It's a little--very little--stream of consciousness-like in its style, but if you pay attention you'll know what's going on (be grateful; in Joyce's last novel he creates his own language and writes in it). It is, however, a modernist work, which in Joyce's case means it gives the inner mind precedence over the outer world. If you can get into it, it's a wonderful book, very moving at times, and always thought-provoking. Most people place this book in the top 5 novels written this century (Joyce's other famous novel, Ulysseys, is almost always #1). If you just can't get past the manner in which this book is written, then don't bother with it. Try again in a couple of years; I wouldn't have enjoyed this book much in high school. Otherwise, give it a serious shot--that means actually *reading* the text instead of passing your eyes across it and seeing the words--and you'll probably be very happy with it; I was, at least. END
Rating: 
Summary: Bad Habits Start Early
Review: "Portrait of the Artist" is almost a prototype of Joyce's later "Ulysses." It also shows the origins of what is wrong with Joyce's style. As with "Ulysses," the writing is rambling and the style is constantly changing. The beginning chapters are written in fairly efficient prose, but as the story progresses it becomes harder and harder to read. At least it avoids the shifting narrative voice of "Ulysses." Some of the plot doesn't hold up. The Dedalus family keeps moving into worse and still worse neighborhoods. Who would really do that? The book is also a real downer, dealing as it does with death and alienation.
Rating:
Summary: EEEH
Review: i couldn't even get past chapter 3. it bored me explicably. young steven's thoughts jump back and forth no explanation given. Read portrait of an artist as a young dog by Dylan Thomas. quite a bit better in my opinion.
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