Kerouac, Jack

On the Road (Two Editions)

ISBN: 9780141182674;9780
London, England: Penguin Books Ltd., 2000; 2008. First Softcover Editions Thus, Later Printings. Softcovers. Both volumes signed by Carolyn Cassady, one also inscribed & dated. Jack Kerouac's On the Road, along with Allen Ginsberg's Howl & William S. Burroughs' Naked Lunch, ignited the Beat Generation into a popular phenomenon that in turn paved the way for the seismic literary & cultural upheavals which culminated during the 1960s. Famously written on a single roll of paper in a nonstop benzedrine-fueled binge of only several weeks during 1951, it gestated in Kerouac's rucksack until finally published in a highly edited form by The Viking Press in September 1957, heralded by an enthusiastic review by Gilbert Millstein in the trusted "Establishment" New York Times. As with all of Kerouac's novels, it is really a memoir, in this case of Kerouac's ("Sal Paradise") adventures back & forth across the American continent during 1947-1950 with Neal Cassady ("Dean Moriarty") & their encounters with Cassady's wife Carolyn ("Camille") & their children, WSB ("Old Bull Lee"), Ginsberg ("Carlo Marx"), Herbert Huncke ("Elmer Hassel") & many other of their real-life family members & co-founders of the Beat Generation. The year of 2007 marked the fiftieth anniversary of the first publication of On the Road, & the successor to its original publisher issued a special edition entitled On the Road: The Original Scroll, with transcription of the text as it was originally written on the legendary single roll of paper, including the characters' actual names & structured without paragraphs. Preceding the transcription are four scholarly critical introductions by Editor Howard Cunnell, Penny Viagopoulos, George Mouratidis & Joshua Kupetz. Offered here is the first UK softcover edition thus, second printing as indicated by number on copyright page, published the year after the first hardcover edition of OtR:TOS (2008). What makes this copy extremely special is that it is hand-inscribed, signed & dated during the year of publication in bold black ink by Carolyn Cassady (1923-2013), Neal's widow & a character in the novel, here under her own name, as follows: "For Dick,/ with great admiration/ & gratitude!/ Love,/ (signed) Carolyn Cassady/ 5/12/08/ Birmingham." "Dick" is R(ichard) J. Ellis, a British Beat collector-scholar & the author of a compact biography of Kerouac (see item No. 4335) published the next year (2009), for which he undoubtedly consulted her. Carolyn's affection for Ellis is clearly shown in this most warm inscription. Also in this bundle is a UK softcover first edition thus of the original edited 1957 version of OtR, much later printing (probably since it was first-ever published in the UK) as indicated by number "38" on copyright page, wherein Carolyn appears as "Camille." On the contents page (which notes an introduction by Ann Charters, Kerouac's first biographer & bibliographer), Carolyn Cassady has hand-written her signature (only) in regular ball-point ink. Two editions of the Kerouac classic, both signed by Carolyn Cassady (a phenomenon that very rarely if ever returns to the marketplace) & one with especially rich association & provenance. Both volumes in very fine condition with only very slight rubbing to front, back covers & spines; a bit of wear & a few tiny bumps at edges & corners of same; thin area of light rubbing at lower, side corner-edges of text block. Interiors very fine with only tiny bumps at corners of a few page leaves. Very Fine. [Item #4379]

Price: $400.00