Kerouac: A Biography

by Ann Charters

Book Overview

Now that Kerouac's major novel, On the Road is accepted as an American classic, academic critics are slowly beginning to catch up with his experimental literary methods and examine the dozen books comprising what he called 'the legend of Duluoz.' Nearly all of his books have been in print internationally since his death in 1969, and his writing has been discovered and enjoyed by new readers throughout the world. Kerouac's view of the promise of America,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312113471
• ISBN13: 9780312113476
• Release Date: October 1994
• Publisher: St. Martins Press-3PL
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

A Biography Worth the Read!

Ms. Charters did a commenable job putting togetherthis book. I would rate it right up there withNicosia's bio. The author certainly provided a lotof background info and did a compelling job ofhelping me get a better understanding of the socialclimate which Kerouac & friends had to contend withand conquer. My only complaint is that her writing stylesometimes lapses into a style a little too closely alliedwith that of her subject, but given the subject matter, that isunderstandable. I would recommend this book for those of you who have found Kerouac's writings to be enjoyable.

I couldn't put this down

While in college, I had to do a paper on "On The Road" and after reading it, I became absolutely fascinated with Jack Kerouac. I got this book out of the library one day. I think it is excellent. It documents Kerouac's whole life from birth to death and gives the reader a wonderul insight into the "real" Jack Kerouac. I literally could not put this down.

....

Definitely a commendable effort by Ms. Charters... I could invision myself as an observer of Kerouac's life experiences...heck...I thought I was standing right beside him...I would recommend this book for anyone interested about Kerouac...after all...he taught us ..."the joy of life is on the road and that we'll all be the same in the end...."

Probably the second best Kerouac bio.

Next to Greg Nicosia's book, this is probably the best biography we have on Kerouac. I'd recommend that you read both Charter's and Nicosia's.