Cursed from Birth: The Short, Unhappy Life of William S. Burroughs, Jr. [Paperback]

William S. Burroughs Jr. (Author), David Ohle (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2006

Being the son of counter-culture author William S. Burroughs is bound to be a trial. After all, the man who frequented lesbian dives and had a fascination with firearms couldn't possibly make that great of a father. Perhaps inevitably, William Jr. (called Billy) referred to himself as "cursed from birth" and in the book of the same name editor David Ohle collects parts of Billy's third and unfinished novel Prakriti Junction, his last journals and poems, and correspondence and conversations to recreate this tortured life. Endowed with the sufferings — but not the patience — of Job, Billy's life was often characterized by tragedy and frustration, although there were also pockets of success and levity. More than just the memoir of a casualty of the Beat Generation, Cursed From Birth provides rare insight in Billy's father, as well as his scene, friends, and times. It also provides an all-too-familiar story of familial difficulties that anyone with difficult parents can understand and appreciate.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Soft Skull Press (October 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1933368381
• ISBN-13: 978-1933368382
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #571,115 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book yet on Bill Burroughs, Jr., January 9, 2007

By 

joebstewart (Arlington, Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cursed from Birth: The Short, Unhappy Life of William S. Burroughs, Jr. (Paperback)

Billy was a friend of mine.I knew him at Green Valley School in Orange City, Fla. in 1972 and afterwards until his death in 1981. I think this book tells his story the way he would like. Literary Outlaw is the other good bio of Bill Burroughs, Sr. in which Billy's life is well told. Read both of these books and you will know the Burroughs. The old man was a genius and a great writer but a lousy father. The son was cursed from birth(that title is something Billy wrote himself and signed a letter with to his father).
I tried to tell Billy to change his name in 1972. I thought that would be his only chance of surviving the Burroughs name. But of course his course was set. He was and would always be a Burroughs. To have your father kill your mother when you are 4 and then to be sent to grow up with your grandparents(abandoned by your father)and then to learn in your teens that your father is the notorious junkie homosexual genius author of NAKED LUNCH well how would you handle that? So self destruction was Billy's fate. This is an excellent book and anyone who is interested in either father or the son should enjoy and learn from it. One thing though. Billy enjoyed his life VERY MUCH until he got sick. So his life was not that short and was certainly not all unhappy. Just the last 10 years of it.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A HOME FOR BILLY AT LAST!, September 11, 2006

By 

Bored of Folk (Nowhere, Everywhere) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cursed from Birth: The Short, Unhappy Life of William S. Burroughs, Jr. (Paperback)

After what seemed to be an amazingly long wait, Cursed From Birth, the sort of biography, sort of last lost novel of William Burroughs Jr has finally been published by those saviours at Soft Skull. And...it was well worth the wait. I am 3/4 way through and the book does not disappoint. Billy's story was alway one of tragedy, self-loathing, self-pity and probably inherited addictive behaviours. However, his writing, when he was relatively sobre, is always witty, concise and truthful, more so than his fathers. It is a sad testament to a great biography of a dead person that you want the ending to be anything but their demise. And this book is no different. Highly recommend for all lovers of beat literature.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy this book!, December 18, 2006

By 

cveditions (Upstate New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cursed from Birth: The Short, Unhappy Life of William S. Burroughs, Jr. (Paperback)

As his contemporary, I never met Billy, but now I feel as I have. I grew up in the same circles and understand the difficulty of being surrounded by famous writers. He tells what it was like growing up beat. All beat aficiandos need to read this. Put it in the highschool library. I wish I had published it.