"The special merit of Christopher Gair's supremely intelligent study is its awareness that the Beats still attract attention for extra literary reasons."
Description
Without them, the Hippies and the Punks would never have existed.
The Beat Generation were a radical group of American writers whose relaxed, gritty and candid writing inspired generations. In his chronicle of the origins, adventures, and inner workings of the Beat movement, Christopher Gair reveals how it sparked one of the most important revolutions in American literature, influencing everything from bebop to the Beastie Boys.
Reviews
"In this essential study, Professor Gair takes us beyond the cliches of the beatnik and non-conformity to establish how the Beat Generation came out of the political, economic, cultural, and ideological tensions of post-1945 America."
"For its breadth of coverage, including the international impact of the Beats, as well as for the perspecuity of its detailing, this book is both an excellent beginning point and a reference source to be returned to time and again."
"Making a clear and coherent historical narrative out of the richly varied but often messy and disputed elements comprising the Beat Generation."
