Kerouac In Florida: Where The Road Ends [Paperback]

Bob Kealing (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Kealing's engaging, friendly style sweeps the reader along as each new address, each surviving neighbor, becomes an opportunity for discovery." --Orlando Sentinel

"Kealing doesn't shy away from the sadness of the man...he also captures the fierce energy of the writer." --Saint Petersburg Times

Product Details

• Paperback: 167 pages
• Publisher: Arbiter Pr (March 31, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0962138533
• ISBN-13: 978-0962138539
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,250,214 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thanks for stopping by my author page. Shady Lane Press is out with an UPDATED edition of my Kerouac in Florida book. You can find it at kerouacproject.org and coming soon to Amazon. In the fall of 2012, University Press of Florida will release my latest book, Calling Me Home, Gram Parsons and the Roots of Country Rock. Even if you're a stalwart fan, I promise new things: the story behind the so-called Harvard photos and how Gram attracted a Life magazine shoot when still a teen-ager, a major revelation about Gram's family that brings new context to one of the biggest tragedies in his life, quotes from a memoir written by his sister Avis, and a brand new interview with Jim Stafford on what he now remembers about giving Gram the advice to "go country." It's been a rewarding journey in to the heart of Cosmic America. I was also honored to write liner notes for the late Country Music Hall-of-Famer Charlie Louvin's 2010 live tribute album to Gram Parsons. I interviewed Charlie twice for my new book.
Twitter @bobkealing I'm a working journalist for WESH-TV in Orlando, covering the Casey Anthony saga since it began in 2008.
These books, containing almost exclusively new primary source interviews, are what I do for fun.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Work, February 1, 2006

By 

Jeffery Glen Nettles "The Great Gonzo" (Gainesville FL. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kerouac In Florida: Where The Road Ends (Paperback)

Bob Kealing's "Jack Kerouac in Florida: Where the Road Ends" is an oasis of fresh water for those who thirst for the radiance of the beat generation. Kealing's investigation not only tackles controversial issues surrounding Kerouac's life but also uncovers fresh chronicles and knowledge. Furthermore, Kealing's work provides real life personalities to a number of Kerouac's long time friends and family. Most of whom, Kerouac wrote about in "On The Road" and other beat novels. I also found Kealing's narrative of Kerouac's adventures in Florida captivating. Simply but, it's an adventurous biography about the original adventurer.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A road worth taking!, April 28, 2005

By 

J. Nathaniel Berke "J. Nathaniel Berke, write... (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kerouac In Florida: Where The Road Ends (Paperback)

When I first heard about this book it blew my mind. Having grown up in Orlando I often struggled with it's lack of culture (besides Zora Neale Hurston). Who would have thought that driving around town as a teenager (probably with a worn copy of "On the Road" in my car) I was driving by two houses where Jack Kerouac wrote "The Dharma Bums" and "Big Sur." Bob Kealing has uncovered this gem of literary history in an eloquent elegy for not only Jack Kerouac, but his sister "Nin."

Some say "you can't go home again," but it looks like sometimes you can. I was so moved by this great little book that I optioned the film rights a bit over a year ago and am proud to say that with Bob's talent, faith and passoin, will be bringing this great untold story to the screen.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A side of Kerouac you seldom see, February 20, 2007

By 

JM (Rochester, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kerouac In Florida: Where The Road Ends (Paperback)

Everyone knows of Kerouac's famous road trips, hitchhiking or riding the rails. And Lowell, Mass. is famous as his hometown. But few think of Kerouac's time spent in Florida, which was actually where he found fame on the publishing of On the Road and where he wrote, among others, the stellar Dharma Bums.

Kealing depicts Kerouac's life in Florida in a starkly honest way, sprinkling interviews with neighbors and friends along with the story of the last 10 years of Kerouac's life. You get a sense of Kerouac's mad love of nature and his family as well as the depression that drove him to drink himself to death. It's a very moving account of the life of an often-misunderstood literary genius.