Johnson, Joyce; Kerouac, Jack

Door Wide Open: A Beat Love Affair in Letters, 1957-1958

ISBN: 0670890405
New York, NY: Viking Penguin, 2000. First Edition. Hardcover. "On a blind date in Greenwich Village set up by Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac met Joyce Glassman in January of 1957, nine months before he became famous overnight with the publication of On the Road. She was an adventurous, independent-minded twenty-one-year-old who earned her keep as a secretary but who already had a publisher interested in her first novel. Kerouac was running on empty at thirty-five, even before he was thrust into the spotlight...This unique book, containing the many letters the two of them wrote to each other whenever Jack was in transit, reveals a surprising side of Kerouac- his capacity for forming a tender bond with a woman who shared his passion for writing. It also gives us a vivid and immediate picture from the female perspective of what it took to be young and Beat in the Cold War fifties..." (from front flap) A volume of letters between Jack Kerouac, Founding Father of the Beat Generation, & Joyce Johnson (then Glassman) written just before & during his sudden notoriety & the popular Beat phenomenon. With Johnson's extensive introduction, & chronological commentaries preceding letter groups that provide insight & context. Hardcover in unclipped dust jacket, first edition, first printing as indicated by number sequence on copyright page. Loosely included is a quaint bookmark advertising an east coast-USA bookstore chain from previous owner. A very important collectible compilation which displays & dissects the writer-to-writer rapport between Kerouac & Johnson during this crucial chapter of his life & legacy. Book in very fine condition with only short remainder mark in black felt-tip ink at lower edge of text block near spine; otherwise virtually mint inside & out. Dust jacket very fine with slight rubbing & scratching to front, back covers & spine; a few tiny bumps & short, very faint creases at thin edges & corners of same. Very Fine / Very Fine. [Item #4204]

Price: $50.00 save 25% $37.50