One of the most widely read and influential American writers of the 20th century, Jack Kerouac is often misunderstood. This study examines the confessions of a 20th-century St. Augustine and traces the progress of a great pilgrim through the decline of modern civilization. Christy focuses on the last ten years of Kerouac's life, from the influential New York Times rave review of On the Road until his death in 1969, a period in Kerouac's life that until now has been dismissed by most biographers as nothing more than a drunken decline. Christy asserts that Kerouac was a madman and mystic whose last days were wilder and more fascinating than any of the adventures he wrote about. As Christy reveals, in the last decade of his life Jack Kerouac was racing to obtain his goal of being “safe in heaven dead.”
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About the Author
Jim Christy is the author of The BUK Book: Musings on Charles Bukowski.
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14 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
The Long Slow Death of Jack Kerouac,
By
This review is from: The Long Slow Death of Jack Kerouac (Paperback)
This book would better be titled: A Short, Superficial, Almost Completely Unannotated Biography of Jack Kerouac and How Cool I Am by Jim Christy. To read this is to read about Jack Kerouac by the only man who claims to REALLY understand him. He gives no reason for you to believe this except his own allegations that it's true. He makes his own mistakes also (the song Beatnik Fly was recorded by "Johnny and the Hurricanes" not "Jay and the Hurricanes" for instance ). The ones that I saw were admittedly small but it led me to believe that there could be many more since most of his information is based on his own experiences and not even one remotely reliable source can be supplied. Lastly, he feels that he must defame other biographers,saying that Ann Charters book is "the worst" and that Nicosia,s Memory Babe should be read "under eyebrows raised high as they"ll go" If that is true then NOTHING in this book should be believed. The notes on the back of the jacket pretty much say it:"Kerouac thought of himself as a serious religious writer and never failed to stress this fact to anyone who would listen. Most didn't. Jim Christy did." And you had better believe old Jim but I sure don't know why.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best book on Kerouac!!!,
By James Eke (Ontario) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Long Slow Death of Jack Kerouac (Paperback)
Forget all the [junk] that most biographers scribble in their dark corners about perhaps the greatest writer of the 20th century (except for perhaps Blaise Cendrars) -- read this book and take a glimpse into Kerouac. Christy has given a great snapshot of the man that was Kerouac. Anyone who slags this book hasn't read it, let it roll around between their ears and finally digest the whole shooting match.This is a great book!
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The definitive and concise Jack Kerouac biography!,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Long Slow Death of Jack Kerouac (Paperback)
Jim Christy's understanding and research of Jack Kerouac makes this book both insightful and provocative. Christy discusses Kerouac's Catholic, French Canadian background and how he feels it impacted his work. Throughout the book Christy interjects insightful and personal opinions about Jack Kerouac which puts a more human touch to what has become another icon of the month.A must read if you are at all interested in the Beat Generation. Highly recommended!!!!
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