Photo courtesy: The General Consulate of Ireland Website
Where Irish literature, transit and civic history meet.
San Francisco Public Library is joining Bloomsday and Beyond to help celebrate reading, storytelling and the literary spirit of James Joyce’s Ulysses across San Francisco.
Bloomsday and Beyond is co-presented by the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and the Consulate General of Ireland in San Francisco as a celebration of James Joyce, Irish literature and the legacy of the Irish in San Francisco. This mobile event will connect James Joyce’s legendary Ulysses with the legacy of Michael O’Shaughnessy, the Irish-born city engineer whose visionary work created Muni.
Michael O’Shaughnessy shaped the everyday lives of San Franciscans through the development of the most sustainable public transportation network in the Western United States, Muni. James Joyce changed the literary landscape with his masterpiece Ulysses. We’ll be celebrating both of these examples of Irish ingenuity and innovation on Bloomsday, Tuesday, June 16, through book readings and Irish book giveaways. The Twin Peaks Tunnel links O’Shaughnessy’s public works legacy with Muni’s continuing role in connecting people, neighborhoods, businesses, culture and community.
Join this moving event and travel through the city with the Muni Diaries, diplomats from the Consulate General of Ireland, and a mobile panel of Joyce enthusiasts. Wander with us like Leopold Bloom did in Dublin, as we explore Ulysses and the city of San Francisco with Muni.
Tuesday, 6/16/2026
11:30 a.m.—5:00 p.m.
Irish book reading and giveaway schedule
Schedule subject to change. Free books available while supplies last.
- 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Union Square / Market Street Station Concourse (connected to the Powell Street Station)
- 1:15 – 1:45 p.m. Forest Hill Station
- 2:15– 3:00p.m. West Portal Station — Find SFPL on the West-bound side of the station
- 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. United Irish Cultural Center (2700 45th Ave, San Francisco, CA 94116) — Find the Bookmobile present for book giveaways
Partner acknowledgment
Bloomsday and Beyond is co-presented by the SFMTA and the Consulate General of Ireland in San Francisco, with support from the United Irish Cultural Center, San Francisco Public Library, Muni Diaries, Shaping San Francisco and local Irish cultural partners.
