Ulysses Uncovered is the best book you can have to climb the mountain that is Ulysses. Within a week of leisurely reading you will know the story of Joyce's great masterpiece and you will have gained great insights into each of the main characters of the novel. The 18 chapters of Ulysses Uncovered parallel the 18 episodes of Ulysses and all of the comments and footnotes therein are informative and revealing.