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4.4k reviews for:
On the Road (Penguin Classics) by Kerouac Jack (2002-12-31) Paperback
Jack Kerouac
3.28 AVERAGE
4.4k reviews for:
On the Road (Penguin Classics) by Kerouac Jack (2002-12-31) Paperback
Jack Kerouac
3.28 AVERAGE
I'm a fan of the beatnik generation for its bare-bones simplicity. On the Road was easy to absorb and was rich with the imagery of wanderlust. This book epitomizes Kerouac and allows you to meet Burroughs and Ginsberg through a third-party, as well, which is why I think it's a beat text that every fan of that gang should pick up. That being said, it was easy to see why recent debate over this text has been sparked in which scholars argue it's not a piece worth teaching. I'm inclined to agree, I think it's best read for leisure, whereas Ginsberg has more of a place in schools. Some of the characters, like Dean and Carlo, for example, were fairly well-rounded and a lot of fun to get to know. However, there were few, if any, female characters that we were able to get intimately acquainted with; they were portrayed more as vehicles for the men's pleasure and plot devices on their journey. I found that to be a bit disappointing. In any sense, I'd recommend it -- it's an iconic piece that lets us into the world of the beatniks, which trumps all my qualms in importance.
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A story about a bunch of racist sexist men doing drugs, having sex, and chronically abandoning their girlfriends. I vacillated between enjoying and hating this story. It was a bumpy road indeed.
P.S.—I’m also mad that Kerouac’s publishers scrubbed all the gay bits. You have to read the rough draft to find out that Allan Watts and whats-his-face were fucking a bunch.
You’ve got all the wild rebel stuff—drinking, smoking, stealing, driving fast, tea, philandering, jazz, partying, hoo-hah, wahoo, being a jerk, casual misogyny, less-casual racism, absentee dads, and an undoubtedly burning STD test for good measure. The prose in On the Road isn’t half-bad (in fact, it’s quite good at times) but there’s no plot—and that’s the point. It’s a countercultural novel that used to feel subversive, but now it’s the normative lifestyle brand of Burning Man influencers for an audience of lobotomized onlookers.
It reads like it’s meant for a white, middle-class male crowd in the post war era and likely doesn’t do much for anyone in the contemporary period, who in any case are so far removed from this point in time it is a futile cosplay of a bygone time. Sure, it captures the spirit of rebellion, but it’s tough to see much payoff, especially given the political & social climate in America today.
RIP Jack Kerouac you would have loved ketamine & house music
It reads like it’s meant for a white, middle-class male crowd in the post war era and likely doesn’t do much for anyone in the contemporary period, who in any case are so far removed from this point in time it is a futile cosplay of a bygone time. Sure, it captures the spirit of rebellion, but it’s tough to see much payoff, especially given the political & social climate in America today.
RIP Jack Kerouac you would have loved ketamine & house music
a rewarding, yet gritty and understandably outdated outlook on life
read mainly on trains, planes and public transport
This book already started pretty bad, so the only reason I finished it was because I could not believe it could continue being that bad and still have the reputation it has. I'm glad it was audiobook format, or I would not have managed it. Since I can't un-read it, I'll complain about it.
From what I understand, this is a memoir/journal of a character who travels places and does things with certain people. But the characters are all so painfully uninteresting I couldn't care less about any of them. They mostly drive through all of America, so the narrator sort of just names all the places they pass by, them having done absolutely nothing exciting in any of those places. And the main character, the narrator, isn't funny, isn't smart, isn't compassionate or anything else I could have maybe be amused by. He's actually a drunk misogynist jerk, and his friends are all jerks, but this book is trying to convey how cool they all are. It's kind of embarrassing.
Having there been nothing redeeming about the prose itself, I just feel really sorry I ever picked up this book.
From what I understand, this is a memoir/journal of a character who travels places and does things with certain people. But the characters are all so painfully uninteresting I couldn't care less about any of them. They mostly drive through all of America, so the narrator sort of just names all the places they pass by, them having done absolutely nothing exciting in any of those places. And the main character, the narrator, isn't funny, isn't smart, isn't compassionate or anything else I could have maybe be amused by. He's actually a drunk misogynist jerk, and his friends are all jerks, but this book is trying to convey how cool they all are. It's kind of embarrassing.
Having there been nothing redeeming about the prose itself, I just feel really sorry I ever picked up this book.
Strong character development:
No
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated