Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian a ...

(March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969) was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the

Beat Generation The Beat Generation was a literary subculture movement started by a group of authors whose work explored and influenced American culture and politics in the post-war era. The bulk of their work was published and popularized by Silent Generatio ...

. Kerouac is recognized for his method of spontaneous prose. Thematically, his work covers topics such as Catholic spirituality, jazz,

promiscuity Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different Sexual partner, partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as pro ...

, Buddhism, drugs, poverty, and travel. Kerouac used the name "Duluoz Legend" to refer to his collected autobiographical works.

Fiction

*''

The Town and the City ''The Town and the City'' is a novel by Jack Kerouac, published by Harcourt Brace in 1950. This was the first major work published by Kerouac, who later became famous for his second novel '' On the Road'' (1957). Like all of Jack Kerouac's major ...

'' (written 1946–1949; published 1950) *''

On the Road ''On the Road'' is a 1957 novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across the United States. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagonis ...

'' (written 1951; published 1957) *''

The Subterraneans ''The Subterraneans'' is a 1958 novella by Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac. It is a semi-fictional account of his short romance with Alene Lee (1931–1991), an African-American woman, in Greenwich Village, New York. It was the first work of ...

'' (written 1953; published 1958) *'' The Dharma Bums'' (written November 1957; published 1958) *''

Doctor Sax ''Doctor Sax'' (''Doctor Sax: Faust Part Three'') is a novel by Jack Kerouac published in 1959. Kerouac wrote it in 1952 while living with William S. Burroughs in Mexico City. The novel was written quickly in the improvisatory style Kerouac ca ...

'' (written June 1952; published 1959) *'' Maggie Cassidy'' (written Jan. 2, 1953; published 1959) *''

Tristessa : ''This article refers to the short novel by Jack Kerouac. For the Smashing Pumpkins song, see Tristessa (song)'' ''Tristessa'' is a novella by Beat Generation writer Jack Kerouac set in Mexico City. It is based on his relationship with a Mexic ...

'' (written summer 1955 and fall 1956; published 1960) *''

Lonesome Traveler ''Lonesome Traveler'' is a non-fiction collection of short essays and sketches by American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac, published in 1960. It is a compilation of Kerouac's journal entries about traveling the United States, Mexico, Morocco, t ...

'' (1960) *''

Book of Dreams ''Book of Dreams'' is the tenth studio album by Steve Miller Band. The album was released in May 1977 on Capitol Records in the United States, Canada and Japan and by Mercury Records in Europe. Three singles were released from the album in 1977 w ...

'' (written 1952–1960; published 1960) *''

Big Sur Big Sur () is a rugged and mountainous section of the Central Coast of California between Carmel and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. It is frequently praised for its dramatic scenery. Big Sur ha ...

'' (written October 1961; published 1962) *''

Visions of Gerard ''Visions of Gerard'' is a novel by American Beat writer Jack Kerouac. Written in the first two weeks of 1956, while staying with his sister Caroline in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, Kerouac's novel would not be published until 1963. It is the firs ...

'' (written January 1956; published 1963) *'' Desolation Angels'' (written fall 1956 and summer 1961; published 1965) *'' Satori in Paris'' (1966) *'' Vanity of Duluoz'' (written 1967; published 1968) ;Posthumous fiction *''

The Sea Is My Brother ''The Sea Is My Brother'' is a novel by the American author Jack Kerouac, published in 2011. The novel was written in 1942 and remained unpublished throughout Kerouac's lifetime due to his dissatisfaction with it. The plot and its characters are ...

'' (written 1942; first published in Slovak translation 2010 Bratislava, Slovakia, European Union: Artfórum) *''

The Haunted Life and Other Writings ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...

'', Novel (written 1944; published 2014) *''

Orpheus Emerged ''Orpheus Emerged'' is a novella written by Jack Kerouac in 1945 when he was at Columbia University. It was discovered after his death and published in 2000. ''Orpheus Emerged'' chronicles the passions, conflicts, and dreams of a group of bohemi ...

'', novella (written 1944–1945; published 2000) *''

And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks ''And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks'' is a novel by Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs. It was written in 1945, a full decade before the two authors became famous as leading figures of the Beat Generation, and remained unpublished in co ...

'', with William S. Burroughs (written 1945; published 2008) *''

La vie est d'hommage LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

'', edition of all previously unpublished French writings, includes some non-fiction (written 1950-1965; published 2016) *" The Unknown Kerouac: Rare, Unpublished & Newly Translated Writings" (1946-1968; published 2016) *'' Visions of Cody'' (written 1951–1952; excerpts published December 1959; novel published 1972) *'' Pic'' (written 1951 and 1969, published 1971)

Poetry

*''

Pull My Daisy ''Pull My Daisy'' is a 1959 American short film directed by Robert Frank and Alfred Leslie, and adapted by Jack Kerouac from the third act of his play, '' Beat Generation''. Kerouac also provided improvised narration. It features poets Allen ...

'' (late 1940s) *''

Mexico City Blues ''Mexico City Blues'' is a poetry, poem published by Jack Kerouac in 1959 composed of 242 "choruses" or stanzas. Written between 1954 and 1957, the poem is the product of Kerouac's spontaneous prose, his Buddhism, and his disappointment at his fa ...

'' (1955; published 1959) *''

The Scripture of the Golden Eternity ''The Scripture of the Golden Eternity'' is a book of 66 prose poems written by American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac, first published in 1960 by Corinth Books, New York City. The book is Kerouac’s sutra on Buddhist philosophy, in which h ...

'' (1956; published 1960) (meditations, koans, poems) *'' Scattered Poems'' (1945–1968; published 1971) *'' Book of Sketches'' (1952–1957) *''

Old Angel Midnight ''Old Angel Midnight'' is a long narrative poem by American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac. It was culled from five notebooks spanning from 1956 to 1959, while Kerouac was fully absorbed by his studies of Buddhism and Buddhist philosophy. Kerou ...

'' (1956; published 1973) *'' Trip Trap: Haiku on the Road from SF to NY'' (1959; published 1973) (with

Albert Saijo Albert Fairchild Saijo (February 4, 1926 – June 2, 2011) was a Japanese-American poet associated with the Beat Generation. He and his family were imprisoned as part of the United States government's internment of Japanese Americans during World ...

and Lew Welch) *'' Heaven and Other Poems'' (1957–1962; published 1977) *'' San Francisco Blues'' (1954; published 1983) *'' Pomes All Sizes'' (compiled 1960; published 1992) *''

Book of Blues A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arra ...

'' (1954–1961) *''

Book of Haikus ''Book of Haikus'' is a collection of haiku poetry by Jack Kerouac. It was first published in 2003 and edited by Regina Weinreich. It consists of some 500 poems selected from a corpus of nearly 1,000 haiku jotted down by Kerouac in small notebook ...

'' (published 2003) *''Collected Poems'' (published 2012, volume 231 in Library of America) *''Old Angel Midnight'' (City Lights Publishers, 2016 edition)

Other work and non-fiction

*'' Atop an Underwood: Early Stories and Other Writings'' (1936–1943; published 1999) *'' Good Blonde & Others'' (1955; published 1993) *'' Wake Up: A Life of the Buddha'' (1955; published 2008) *'' Some of the Dharma'' (1953–1956; published 1997) *''

'', play (1957, published 2005)

Letters, journals, interviews

*'' Dear Carolyn: Letters to Carolyn Cassady'' (1983) (1000 copies Edited By Arthur and Kit Knight) * *'' Jack Kerouac: Selected Letters, 1957-1969'' *'' Windblown World: The Journals of Jack Kerouac'' (1947–1954) *'' Safe In Heaven Dead'' (1990) (Interview fragments published by

Hanuman Books Hanuman Books was a series of books published between 1986 and 1993 out of the Chelsea Hotel in New York City. Featuring some of the biggest names in avant-garde culture of the time – including figures from Beat poetry, gay and trans culture, War ...

) *'' Conversations with Jack Kerouac'' (Interviews) *'' Empty Phantoms'' (Interviews) *'' Departed Angels: The Lost Paintings'' *'' Door Wide Open'' (2000) (by Joyce Johnson. Includes letters from Jack Kerouac) *'' Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg: The Letters'' (2010)

Collections

Discography

*''

Poetry for the Beat Generation ''Poetry for the Beat Generation'' is the debut album of American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac and was originally released in 1959. Initial performances of these poems were poorly received by an audience at the Village Vangard in 1957. However, ...

(1959)'' (LP) *''

Blues and Haikus ''Blues and Haikus'' is the American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac's second album and was released in 1959. History On the album, Kerouac's poetry readings are accompanied by jazz saxophonists Al Cohn and Zoot Sims. The album is included in th ...

(1959)'' (LP) *''

Readings by Jack Kerouac on the Beat Generation ''Readings by Jack Kerouac on the Beat Generation'' is the third and final spoken word album by the American novelist and poet Jack Kerouac, released in January 1960 on Verve Records. The album was recorded during 1959, prior to the publication of ...

(1960)'' (LP) *''

The Jack Kerouac Collection ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in ...

'' (1990) ox(Audio CD Collection of 3 LPs) *'' The Jack Kerouac Romnibus(1995)'' (a multimedia CD-ROM project coupled with a book) (Ralph Lombreglia and Kate Bernhardt) *'' Jack Kerouac Reads On the Road'' (1999) (Audio CD) *'' Doctor Sax and Great World Snake'' (2003) (Play Adaptation with Audio CD)

Filmography

References

External links

Who’s Who: A Guide to Kerouac’s Characters
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerouac Jack Bibliography Bibliographies by writer Bibliographies of American writers Postmodern literature bibliographies