The Beats: Authorship, Legacies

Explores the counter-cultural movement known as the Beat Generation

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

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 ‘Howl’, On the Road and Naked Lunch. A closing chapter maps post-Beat writing and the ways Beat has morphed into new, even postmodern, forms.