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    On the Road

    On the Road

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    Author: Jack Kerouac
    Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
    Category: Book

    List Price: £8.99
    Buy New: £3.46
    You Save: £5.53 (62%)

    Qty 1 In Stock


    New (36) Used (24) from £1.75

    Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars 50 reviews
    Sales Rank: 1730

    Media: Paperback
    Edition: New
    Pages: 304
    Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
    Dimensions (in): 7 x 4.3 x 0.9

    ISBN: 0140274154
    Dewey Decimal Number: 813
    EAN: 9780140274158
    ASIN: 0140274154

    Publication Date: September 3, 1998
    Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
    Shipping: International shipping available
    Condition: UK SELLER__IN STOCK__Immediate Dispatch (Mon to Fri)_Protective Packaging__Trusted Bucks Retailer__FAST DELIVERY__book cover may vary

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    Editorial Reviews:

    Amazon.co.uk Review
    On The Road, the most famous of Jack Kerouac's works, is not only the soul of the Beat movement and literature, but one of the most important novels of the century. Like nearly all of Kerouac's writing, On The Road is thinly fictionalised autobiography, filled with a cast made of Kerouac's real life friends, lovers and fellow travellers. Narrated by Sal Paradise, one of Kerouac's alter-egos, this cross-country bohemian odyssey not only influenced writing in the years since its 1957 publication but penetrated into the deepest levels of American thought and culture. --Acton Lane


    Customer Reviews:   Read 45 more reviews...

    3 out of 5 stars An important book, if not a great one   August 27, 2008
    Lauren Thomas
    On the Road is very much a book of its time. Based around Sal Paradise (who Kerouac has said is based on himself) and his travels back and forth across America (and eventually to Mexico), it's a relentless tale of the need for adventure when life seems stagnant and lonely. With no ties to keep him in any one place, Sal gets in a car with his friends whenever the desire takes him, searching for answers to life's big questions.

    Filled with the jazz music of the late 40s, Jack Kerouac's book is like a stream of consciousness, and although this often makes the book hard to 'get into' (I don't think I managed more than 20 pages at a time due to the sometimes disjointed and sometimes repetitive writing style), it does leave you with a real yearning need to get out there and see the world. An important book, if not a great one.



    3 out of 5 stars Okay, I get it..   April 13, 2008
    D. T. Brunetti (hessle)
    I understand how books like Kerouac's get elevated to cult status. Take Hunter Thompson's Fear and Loathing for example, that was much the same as Kerouac and other Beat writers. It was not very poetic or well written but it took you somewhere, to a time and state of mind that was free and different for a new generation. Fear and Loathing is decent, this however is not. Certainly not worth the hype, it's long and boring and as a book alone it has no literary merit. You may read about him, his life and the ephemera around the book - then you may appreciate this more, but standing alone this has to be one of the worst books ever slapped on the high pedestal.


    4 out of 5 stars `A primer on how to be a narcissist.'   February 22, 2008
    Mr. RB FORTUNE-WOOD (UK)
    Before I read `On The Road' I read a critical review by a blog psychiatrist who denounced the work as `a primer on how to be a narcissist.' This struck me as accurate, but not as a valid criticism. The self absorbed characters coping with alienation from of their environment and the consequent dissatisfaction with everything the world offers up is this books strength. The novel describes a particular generation from a particular place and it does so unfalteringly.


    5 out of 5 stars Unforgettable!   August 1, 2007
    R. O'loghlen (London, United Kingdom)
    A fast paced tale on bumming around america in the 40's music drugs girls and parties. Unforgettable characters and deep conversations that really hit home. Buy this book if you love the thought of getting up and just experiencing whats out there. Highly recommend!


    4 out of 5 stars Interesting Read   February 1, 2007
    M. Godenho (uk)
    1 out of 1 found this review helpful

    This book is a classic so I picked it up. I wouldn't consider myself a HUGE reader but I found this book a bit tough going at first.

    The style of writing is that of someone from the beat poet generation who's on the road and bit lost, meaning that there are long sentences which extend right down the page, almost following one train of thought as if it has been written in a complete rant, which is important because he might have forgotten what he was gonna say and then when you least expect it, he'll deviate!!

    You get my meaning.

    It's an interesting read and I enjoyed it. Not a light book (not a very one either) but certainly one that captures the spirit of freedom and living your life in those uni/post university days/daze.


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