Kleiman, Miriam (Kerouac, Jack)

Hit the Road Jack!: Jack Kerouac's Short Time in the U.S. Naval Reserve

Coventry, England, UK: Beat Scene Press, 2017. Limited First Edition Thus. Stapled Wrappers. "The qualities that made On the Road a huge success and Kerouac a powerful storyteller, guide and literary icon are the same ones that rendered him remarkably unsuitable for the military: Independence, creativity, impulsivity, sensuality and recklessness." (from second page) An essay that focuses on the brief, aborted U.S. Naval Reserve career of Jack Kerouac during World War II. The author, Miriam Kleiman, is a public affairs specialist, scholarly writer & a graduate of the University of Michigan here in Ann Arbor. With access to records not available until 2005, Kleiman describes the findings of the military's psychiatric evaluators who "diagnosed" Kerouac as suffering from Dementia Praecox & other mental illnesses. He was discharged from service as unsuitable, not even having finished boot camp. The whole story of this brief but critical episode in the life of Kerouac is extracted from his extensive military file. Originally published in Prologue Magazine Vol. 43, No. 3 (Fall 2011), this is a limited, hand-numbered edition, on of 150 copies published during November 2017 as Number 62 in the Beat Scene Press series of chapbooks produced by Kevin Ring in the UK. This is copy No. 61/150. An earlier copy of this item was presented & sold by us at the time of publication, this copy was obtained from the archive/collection of Ring himself- the editor, publisher & contributor to the indispensable Beat Scene Magazine & many other special volumes such as this (see our many exemplars thereof). A deep & thoughtful work of Kerouac scholarship; a beautiful production that has taken its place among the ever-increasingly rare numbers in this series. In very fine condition with only a touch of rubbing to front, back covers & stapled spine; a few tiny bumps, creases at edges & corners of same. Interior very fine, appearing substantially mint. Very Fine. [Item #8001]

Price: $40.00