Windblown World: The Journals of Jack Kerouac 1947-1954

Editor Douglas Brinkley has mined Jack Kerouac's notebooks for this collection of commentary, story ideas, diary-like entries, word counts, sexual adventures, and revisions. A window into Kerouac's multifarious mind, this volume sheds valuable light on his composition of ON THE ROAD. But it also looks into less well-known corners of his psyche, including his intense religiosity, his love of baseball, his absolute seriousness about reading literature, and his admiration for writers as diverse as Melville and Trollope.

"Brinkley's intelligent choices allow us to see both the familiar Kerouac and the mysterious stranger as well." - (Kirkus, 8/15/04)

"The publication of WINDBLOWN WORLD...may at first strike readers as an attempt to squeeze more toothpaste out of Kerouac's flattened tube. Fortunately, the book is better than that. For one thing, unlike other posthumous volumes that have worn Kerouac's name, it's readable....Most important, though, the entries tell a story of self-invention, perseverance and breakthrough that should help rescue Kerouac from the cultists and secure his admission to the mainstream hall of fame, where he deserves to rest....The traditional rap against Kerouac--that he was a sort of half-baked dopehead primitivi - Supryia M. Ray (New York Times Book Review, 10/10/04)

"These journals are an essential resource for American literature scholars, but the force of Kerouac's personality makes them an engrossing read for lay admirers." - (Publishers Weekly, 8/16/04)

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