The names of James Joyce and Ezra Pound ring out in the annals of literary modernism, but few recognize the name of Samuel Roth. A brash, business-savvy entrepreneur, Roth made a name--and a profit--for himself as the founding editor and owner of magazines that published selections from foreign writings--especially the risque parts--without permission. When he reprinted segments of James Joyce's epochal novel Ulysses, the author took him to court.

Without Copyrights tells the story of how the clashes between authors, publishers, and literary "pirates" influenced both...