The Beats

Explores the counter-cultural movement known as the Beat Generation
This book pairs close readings with a strong overview of the movement and ranges from Women's Beat Writing to African American Beats to the canonical texts, including Alan Ginsberg's 'Howl', Jack Kerouac's On the Road and William Burroughs's Naked Lunch. A closing chapter maps post-Beat writing and the ways Beat has morphed into new, even postmodern, forms.
Key Features
- Gives a detailed overview of the movement both in the US and internationally
- Includes chapters on significant women writers such as Diane di Prima, Joanne Kyger and Anne Waldman
- Covers readings from John Clellon Holmes, Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Gregory Corso to Herbert Huncke, Neal Cassady, Michael McClure and Gary Snyder
- Focuses on African American writers like LeRoi Jones/Amiri Baraka, Ted Joans and Bob Kaufman
A. Robert Lee, formerly of the University of Kent, is a retired Professor of American Literature at Nihon University, Tokyo, 1997-2011. His previous books include Multicultural American Literature: Comparative Black, Native, Latino/a and Asian American Literature (2003), which won the American Book Award in 2004, and Modern American Counter Writing: Beats, Outriders, Ethnics (2010).