By Erica Schwiegershausen 6/18/12 10:00am

literary events

Bagpiper Garry Cheddy flanked by Bloomsday participants.

Many Who Have Read (and a Few That Actually Understood) Ulysses Gather in Park Slope for Annual Bloomsday Pub Crawl

“June 16 is one day in the life of Leopold Bloom in Dublin and that’s about all I understand,” Kings County District Attorney Charles “Joe” Hynes told The Observer on Saturday at the annual Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick’s (FSOSP) Bloomsday pub crawl.

Two years ago, FSOSP members John Burns, Declan Walsh and Jimmy Ryan decided Brooklyn needed to participate in Bloomsday—an international celebration that takes place on June 16, that date of the often-drunken exploits of Leopold Bloom chronicled by James Joyce in his novel Ulysses.

“We thought, this is preposterous that Brooklyn doesn’t have [a Bloomsday],” said Mr. Ryan. And who better to organize the day of revelry than the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, a membership group devoted, rather vaguely, to “promoting the spirit of Saint Patrick.” Read More