Synopses & Reviews
Repackaged and refreshed, this seminal biography of a counter-cultural icon is re-issued to form a core part of the Virgin backlist: "[Miles's] mastery of Beat Generation know-how must surely be unrivalled."
--Sunday Telegraph
Iconoclast; visionary; homosexual crusader; drug advocate; teacher and elder statesman to Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and the Beats; anti-hero guru to each successive counter-culture generation: William Burroughs remains one of the most complex and controversial American writers of the twentieth century.
A longtime heroin addict, Burroughs preferred to live abroad, away from America's Draconian drug laws. After killing his wife in a bizarre shooting accident, he moved to Tangier where he lived in a male brothel and wrote his celebrated bestseller Naked Lunch -- in Newsweek's words 'A masterpiece. A cry from Hell' -- as a series of letters to Allen Ginsberg. He lived at the Beat Hotel in Paris and spent a decade in London before returning as prodigal son to New York in 1974 after 25 years of self imposed exile.
Review
"Especially valuable for its coverage of the complex textual history of Burroughs's work." —Library Journal
Review
"Affable and affectionate. . . . Miles is best when considering the genesis and intermingling of Burroughs's fiction and nonfiction." —Publishers Weekly
Review
"There can be no more effective introduction." —Q Magazine
Synopsis
Iconoclast; visionary; homosexual crusader; drug advocate; teacher and elder statesman to the Beats: William Burroughs remains one of the most complex and controversial American writers of the twentieth century.
After killing his wife in a bizarre shooting accident, Burroughs moved to Tangier where he lived in a male brothel and wrote his celebrated bestseller Naked Lunch - in Newsweek's words 'A masterpiece. A cry from Hell' and spent much of the rest of his life in self-imposed exile from the United States. Following Burroughs' death in August 1997, Barry Miles updated his riveting, highly readable and unconventional biography of this legendary provocateur and all-round thorn in the side of the establishment.
Synopsis
Includes bibliographical references (p. 266-272) and index.
Synopsis
Repackaged and refreshed, this seminal biography of a counter-cultural icon is re-issued to form a core part of the Virgin backlist: Miles's] mastery of Beat Generation know-how must surely be unrivalled.
--Sunday Telegraph
Iconoclast; visionary; homosexual crusader; drug advocate; teacher and elder statesman to Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and the Beats; anti-hero guru to each successive counter-culture generation: William Burroughs remains one of the most complex and controversial American writers of the twentieth century.
A longtime heroin addict, Burroughs preferred to live abroad, away from America's Draconian drug laws. After killing his wife in a bizarre shooting accident, he moved to Tangier where he lived in a male brothel and wrote his celebrated bestseller Naked Lunch -- in Newsweek's words 'A masterpiece. A cry from Hell' -- as a series of letters to Allen Ginsberg. He lived at the Beat Hotel in Paris and spent a decade in London before returning as prodigal son to New York in 1974 after 25 years of self imposed exile.
Synopsis
"Miles familiarizes even old close readers with a fine map of Burroughs' mind." Allen Ginsberg Iconoclast; visionary; homosexual crusader; drug advocate; teacher and elder statesman to Jack Kracouac, Allen Ginsberg, and the Beats; anti-hero guru to each successive counter-culture generationthis is a portait of a man who remains one of the most complex and controversial American writers of the 20th century. After killing his wife in a bizarre shooting accident, he moved to Tangier where he lived in male brothel and wrote his celebrated bestseller Naked Lunchin Newsweek's words "A masterpiece. A cry from Hell."as a series of letters to Allen Ginsberg. He lived at the Beat Hotel in Paris and spent a decade in London before returning as prodigal son to New York in 1974 after 25 years of self imposed exile. Following Burroughs' death in August 1997, Barry Miles updated his riveting, unconventional biography of this legendary provocateur.
About the Author
Barry Miles is the author of many seminal books on popular culture, including The Beatles: A Diary, The British Invasion, Charles Bukowski, Hippie, the official biography Paul McCartney: Many Years from Now, Peace: 50 Years of Protest, and Zappa: A Biography. In the 1960s he was co-owner of the Indica Gallery, the countercultural art gallery where John Lennon and Yoko Ono first met.