Kerouac’s long-lost first novel will finally see the light of day
"The Sea Is My Brother," written when Jack Kerouac was just 20, draws on his experience as a merchant seaman. It is finally ready for publication, more than 40 years after his death.
Kerouac is back.
The iconic writer, whose novelsOn the Road and The Dharma Bums inspired the Beat generation, will have a recently discovered work published more than 40 years after his death.
The novel, found in 2009 in his archives, was Kerouac’s first major work. The semi-autographical work, entitled The Sea Is My Brother, was written when Kerouac was 20 and drew on his experience as a merchant seaman.
The work is important because “it opens up and shows a side to (Kerouac) that we don’t normally see in his books,” Dawn Ward, the book’s editor, told BBC News.
The book is being published in the U.K. by Penguin Classics. It will be published in North America in March by Da Capo Press, retailing for $26.50 in Canada and $23 U.S.
Kerouac became a “cult figure” as a result of novels such as On the Road, which portrayed a transient lifestyle featuring the quest for meaning and experimentation with drugs and alcohol, said Dr. Ian McGuire, who teaches American literature at Manchester University.
“Young students, particularly the males, have a perpetual fascination with what he represents,” McGuire said. “I think they find it very appealing, very romantic and very exciting, this idea of leaving home and travelling and discovering yourself and having all these adventures.”
Kerouac, who struggled with the celebrity status he achieved, died in 1969 after a long struggle with alcoholism. He was 47.
"The Sea Is My Brother," written when Jack Kerouac was just 20, draws on his experience as a merchant seaman. It is finally ready for publication, more than 40 years after his death.
Kerouac is back.
The iconic writer, whose novelsOn the Road and The Dharma Bums inspired the Beat generation, will have a recently discovered work published more than 40 years after his death.
The novel, found in 2009 in his archives, was Kerouac’s first major work. The semi-autographical work, entitled The Sea Is My Brother, was written when Kerouac was 20 and drew on his experience as a merchant seaman.
The work is important because “it opens up and shows a side to (Kerouac) that we don’t normally see in his books,” Dawn Ward, the book’s editor, told BBC News.
The book is being published in the U.K. by Penguin Classics. It will be published in North America in March by Da Capo Press, retailing for $26.50 in Canada and $23 U.S.
Kerouac became a “cult figure” as a result of novels such as On the Road, which portrayed a transient lifestyle featuring the quest for meaning and experimentation with drugs and alcohol, said Dr. Ian McGuire, who teaches American literature at Manchester University.
“Young students, particularly the males, have a perpetual fascination with what he represents,” McGuire said. “I think they find it very appealing, very romantic and very exciting, this idea of leaving home and travelling and discovering yourself and having all these adventures.”
Kerouac, who struggled with the celebrity status he achieved, died in 1969 after a long struggle with alcoholism. He was 47.
Source: Thestar.com
Nov 25, 2011
Nov 25, 2011
