The Beat Generation: A Beginner's Guide

(Paperback)

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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

Scott Lucas, Executive Director of Libertas: The Centre for the Study of US Foreign Policy - "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."Ian F. A. Bell, Professor of American Studies at Keele University - "For Chris Gair, there remains 'no coherent overview of the Beat Generation,' but here it is in a breeze of historical narrative. Gair tells a lively and eloquent story that is superbly deft and engaging."James Williams, Senior Managing Editor of Critical Inquiry - "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."

Author Bio

Christopher Gair is a Senior Lecturer in American Literature at the University of Glasgow. He is author of The American Counterculture (2007) and Complicity and Resistance in Jack London's Novels: From Naturalism to Nature (1997).