Classics

On the Road

On the Road

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  • Create Date：2021-06-18 08:54:53
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Jack Kerouac
  • ISBN：0241951534
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Summary

'What's your road， man？ - holyboy road， madman road， rainbow road， guppy road， any road。 It's an anywhere road for anybody anyhow。'

Sal Paradise， young and innocent， joins the slightly crazed Dean Moriarty on a breathless， exuberant ride back and forth across the United States。 Their hedonistic search for release or fulfilment through drink， sex， drugs and jazz becomes an exploration of personal freedom， a test of the limits of the American Dream。

A blend of fiction and autobiography， Jack Kerouac's novel defined the new 'Beat' generation and became the bible of the counter culture。

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Reviews

Asher ，

This book is art of a high and special kind， every page of it。 Why attempt to reduce art by words when there’s no gain in it; it’s just the impulse to rein in what’s greater and free and I know enough to resist。 Please， go read the book。

Jessica ，

Think this is mainly down to the fact I’m in a major reading funk

Greg Chandler ，

Classic wandering tale of the beat generation。 These cool crazy cats take to the road， with no clue where they are going， but they know TIME and like to get "kicks" from altomen who got IT。 Reads a lot like parodies of Beat poets from old cartoons。 Their booze and weed addled philosophies lack cohesion and depth。 I made a couple of road trips with friends。 One trip from Boston to Virginia was a blast， even getting stuck in DC in the middle of the night when the car broke down。 We hated to leave Classic wandering tale of the beat generation。 These cool crazy cats take to the road， with no clue where they are going， but they know TIME and like to get "kicks" from altomen who got IT。 Reads a lot like parodies of Beat poets from old cartoons。 Their booze and weed addled philosophies lack cohesion and depth。 I made a couple of road trips with friends。 One trip from Boston to Virginia was a blast， even getting stuck in DC in the middle of the night when the car broke down。 We hated to leave the south and head home at over 100mph。 Youth is mean for such crazy antics。By the end of On the Road， and the gangs 3rd or fourth cross-country jaunt， I was tired of their immaturity and recklessness， Dean marries theree times and abandons wives and kids at a whim。 He leaves the narrator in Mexico City with la Turista。 Women are seen primarily as girls to "get with" or "make"。 Black musicians are admired for4 their Jazz freedom， but spoken of with what are now cringeworthy racial slurs。 The book is rank with homophobia。 The book is showing its age。What may have been a refreshingly hedonistic book about freedom at the time is hide-bound in its outdated bigotry and insensitivity。 In the end， the narrator Sal rides away in a Caddilac with a conservative friend to hear Jazz in Carnegie Hall， while Dean is left on the street hoofing it back to the train station in a second-hand coat。 The friends don't want top offer him a ride to the station。 The life of the party madman has been rejected and sent packing on the winter road。 。。。more

ra ，

the impact that this had on male civilisation genuinely makes me think reparations are in order。 how does one book do so much damagealso i have so many thoughts， but im going to boil them down to:- this is not a book you have to read。 you could probably wikipedia a summary， read 2 or 3 quotes， maybe google kerouac's biography a little？ and you'd get the gist of it bc the stream-of-consciousness in here is not so much that as it is just word vomit- the only way i made this tolerable （for me） was the impact that this had on male civilisation genuinely makes me think reparations are in order。 how does one book do so much damagealso i have so many thoughts， but im going to boil them down to:- this is not a book you have to read。 you could probably wikipedia a summary， read 2 or 3 quotes， maybe google kerouac's biography a little？ and you'd get the gist of it bc the stream-of-consciousness in here is not so much that as it is just word vomit- the only way i made this tolerable （for me） was to tell myself it was a love story （and it is） （（not compelling enough to cancel out point 1 + all my other problems with it））"。。。I was so mad - I had flipped momentarily and turned it down on Dean。 But the sight of his uneaten food made me sadder than anything in years。 I shouldn't have said that 。。。 he likes to eat so much 。。。 He's never left his food like this。。。" 。。。more

Chiara Furfari ，

Quando mi metto a leggere Kerouac penso sempre al momento in cui dovrò parlarne， e vado in crisi perché i miei pensieri non fanno che infittirsi， come quando sei davanti a un bivio e non sai proprio che strada prendere。 Neanche Dean e Sal lo sapevano， quando hanno intrapreso IL viaggio attraverso l’America。 A volte vorrei avere il coraggio di Dean nel gettarmi senza tormento in tutte le situazioni （anche banali） che la vita offre。 Provai a leggere questo libro a 17 anni， ma dopo una ventina di p Quando mi metto a leggere Kerouac penso sempre al momento in cui dovrò parlarne， e vado in crisi perché i miei pensieri non fanno che infittirsi， come quando sei davanti a un bivio e non sai proprio che strada prendere。 Neanche Dean e Sal lo sapevano， quando hanno intrapreso IL viaggio attraverso l’America。 A volte vorrei avere il coraggio di Dean nel gettarmi senza tormento in tutte le situazioni （anche banali） che la vita offre。 Provai a leggere questo libro a 17 anni， ma dopo una ventina di pagine che reputai noiose， decisi di darlo via。 All’alba dei 24 è tutta un’altra storia。 Quelle che da ragazzina mi sembravano certezze， ora non lo sono più。 Sono adulta， ma non so ancora che cosa vorrei fare da grande。 Ci sono momenti in cui il mio entusiasmo si azzera nel giro di trenta secondi， un po’ come capita a Dean， che poi precipita in una spirale di follia senza limiti。 Eppure， amo ancora prendermi i miei momenti di pura contemplazione。 Metto da parte piccoli dettagli da tenere stretti quando mi sembra di non essermi portata a casa nulla， se non la mia stessa confusione。 Il linguaggio di questo libro è intenso， ti fa sentire scosso dalla vita。 Impossibile non commuoversi di fronte allo stupore con cui Dean osserva il mondo。 Tutti gli danno del pazzo， dell’irresponsabile， ma non importa perché lui sente il tempo， sente la vita e deve andare。 Devo ancora imparare a non regalare troppi giorni all’ansia， ma in quei momenti d’incertezza， il mio pensiero sarà rivolto a Dean Moriarty， che affacciato da un finestrino， con l’aria che gli taglia il viso urla “fanculo！” 。。。more

Doug ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 For a book so deeply significant to 50s Americana， I'm not sure whether I'm disappointed， confused or simply out of the loop。 The first half of On the Road is a whirlwind of disjointed prose， and the last quarter is a wonderfully bland stream-of-consciousness road-trip through Mexico。 I understand that the characters are based on real people - this is a book I feel needs to be digested and re-read at some point， but I doubt I ever will find the motivation。 Interesting， but extremely convoluted a For a book so deeply significant to 50s Americana， I'm not sure whether I'm disappointed， confused or simply out of the loop。 The first half of On the Road is a whirlwind of disjointed prose， and the last quarter is a wonderfully bland stream-of-consciousness road-trip through Mexico。 I understand that the characters are based on real people - this is a book I feel needs to be digested and re-read at some point， but I doubt I ever will find the motivation。 Interesting， but extremely convoluted and very， very pretentious。 Dean and Sal are characters of a nostalgic time we're lucky to have moved on from。 。。。more

Matteo ，

Libro che ti catapulta nei svariati viaggi che hanno come protagonisti， principalmente， Sal e Dean。Questi due personaggi sono caratterizzati molto bene da Kerouac， come del resto anche quelli secondari e più marginali， e il lettore si affeziona molto ai due， soprattutto nel finale。È incredibile come ogni scena descritta da Kerouac ti faccia immergere completamente nella trama， e ti faccia provare le stesse emozioni che provano i vari personaggi。Ho adorato tutto di questo libro， soprattutto le ul Libro che ti catapulta nei svariati viaggi che hanno come protagonisti， principalmente， Sal e Dean。Questi due personaggi sono caratterizzati molto bene da Kerouac， come del resto anche quelli secondari e più marginali， e il lettore si affeziona molto ai due， soprattutto nel finale。È incredibile come ogni scena descritta da Kerouac ti faccia immergere completamente nella trama， e ti faccia provare le stesse emozioni che provano i vari personaggi。Ho adorato tutto di questo libro， soprattutto le ultime pagine e l’ultimo viaggio di Sal， Dean e Stan in Messico。I viaggi， nonostante siano quasi sempre identici， almeno nelle destinazioni， riescono a sorprendere sempre il lettore con le tante storie e situazioni diverse che si susseguono durante il corso della storia， e che rendono il tutto più frizzante e divertente。Un libro da leggere assolutamente per chi ama viaggiare e per chi ama i libri di viaggio in generale， e poi è molto utile per farsi una panoramica di quella che era la Beat Generation。 。。。more

Sofia librosandtea ，

what。。。 I think I didn't get it。。。 sometimes I thought I did but then no。。。 weird what。。。 I think I didn't get it。。。 sometimes I thought I did but then no。。。 weird 。。。more

Luís Santos ，

''Qual é a tua estrada， pá？ A estrada dos tipos santos， a estrada dos tipos doidos， a estrada do arco-íris， a estrada do aquário， qualquer estrada。 É a estrada para toda a parte， para toda a gente。 Onde， quem， como？'' Ao estrear-me com Kerouac fiquei com a sensação que ele escrevia enquanto vivia as coisas， que chegava a fim do dia e apontava tudo ao pormenor， mesmo parecendo impossível fazer tal coisa。 Acompanhamos personagens que viveram atirando-se à estrada， a conhecer outras pessoas。 Acho ''Qual é a tua estrada， pá？ A estrada dos tipos santos， a estrada dos tipos doidos， a estrada do arco-íris， a estrada do aquário， qualquer estrada。 É a estrada para toda a parte， para toda a gente。 Onde， quem， como？'' Ao estrear-me com Kerouac fiquei com a sensação que ele escrevia enquanto vivia as coisas， que chegava a fim do dia e apontava tudo ao pormenor， mesmo parecendo impossível fazer tal coisa。 Acompanhamos personagens que viveram atirando-se à estrada， a conhecer outras pessoas。 Acho incrível。 Acho que isso fez com que ficasse colado ao livro e com que o lê-se relativamente rápido。 Dei por mim a desejar ser um pouco como as personagens， como Neal， por exemplo， （alegre e louco pela vida）。 Gostava de fechar os olhos às responsabilidades e não pensar nas consequências。 O facto de vivermos preocupados com tudo， não aproveitando cada momento como se não houvesse amanhã （pelo menos eu）。A mensagem é simples， a vida é curta demais。Admito que dei por mim a parar a meio de uma frase， a ler frases mais que uma vez， a fechar o livro e a arrepiar-me enquanto me afogava num mar de reflexões。 São poucos os livros que me fazem conter as lágrimas e ficar sem ar por me fazerem reflectir no quão efémeras são as coisas， arrisco-me a incluir este livro nesse grupo。 Pela minha percepção este é um livro em que uma pessoa se entrega por completo e o adora， ou então fica completamente apática ao seu conteúdo， e acho que o meu estado emocional actual fez com que adorasse o livro mais do que julgava。。。 Concluo dizendo que estas personagens são tudo o que não sou。 。。。more

Daniel Mossop ，

Man this was a hard read to finish。 It’s outdated gibberish， it’s worth reading from an historical literature perspective but otherwise literally why bother。

Tiffany Kronebusch ，

He probably had syphilis。

Michael Mercer ，

whats better than this？ just guys being guys。 dudes rock

Virág Bartek ，

It’s my first review ever， but this book was so horrifyingly boring that I have to write it。 I think it’s one of the four maybe five books that I’ve ever read that I just couldn’t finish。 I’ll give it another shot in a few years because it’s on every must-read list， but for now it’s a one star for me。

Marlous ，

One star is actually even too much。 I absolutely hate this book。 I read it because of the fame around it but now that I finished it， I understand the fame even less。I feel empty， hollow and even a bit embarrassed for reading this and having to tell/write about it。I really hope to never have to read， see or anything what so ever about maniac Dean， pushover Sal， and basically everybody's druguse， drug abuse。。。 One star is actually even too much。 I absolutely hate this book。 I read it because of the fame around it but now that I finished it， I understand the fame even less。I feel empty， hollow and even a bit embarrassed for reading this and having to tell/write about it。I really hope to never have to read， see or anything what so ever about maniac Dean， pushover Sal， and basically everybody's druguse， drug abuse。。。 。。。more

Katerina ，

I enjoyed this book from start to finish。 The story line and all of the characters were ripping。

Marlinda ，

A very interesting story with beautiful sentences， but not easy readable。

Annabel Innes ，

Book club。 So bad that I abandoned it。

Anna Samara ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I read the original manuscript and I absolutely adored it。 The punctuation was extraordinary and it contributed to making the book enjoyable for the reader。 It provided the reader wth a fresh point of view when it comes to life in the USA， in the time period of 1947-50。 I especially liked the character of Neal Cassady， for he was a very passionate individual。 He was always out there， living life to its fullest extent。 For an unforgettable experience in terms of genuine travelling， I highly recom I read the original manuscript and I absolutely adored it。 The punctuation was extraordinary and it contributed to making the book enjoyable for the reader。 It provided the reader wth a fresh point of view when it comes to life in the USA， in the time period of 1947-50。 I especially liked the character of Neal Cassady， for he was a very passionate individual。 He was always out there， living life to its fullest extent。 For an unforgettable experience in terms of genuine travelling， I highly recommend this book。 👍 。。。more

Kate ，

I've been meaning to read this for twenty years， and now I finally have， but I didn't like it。 Maybe I would have liked it more if I had read it in my twenties， but reading it now was a chore。 The "beat" language， the pretentious attitudes of the characters who had no clue how shallow they were， the fact that every young female character was miserable and these two men took advantage of them。There's almost no plot， and no sense of being there。 Sal and Dean were both self-centered and interested I've been meaning to read this for twenty years， and now I finally have， but I didn't like it。 Maybe I would have liked it more if I had read it in my twenties， but reading it now was a chore。 The "beat" language， the pretentious attitudes of the characters who had no clue how shallow they were， the fact that every young female character was miserable and these two men took advantage of them。There's almost no plot， and no sense of being there。 Sal and Dean were both self-centered and interested in their own pleasure so that's mostly what the book is about。 I don't want to go on negatively about this book， it's a classic， and those who enjoy it are certainly entitled to do so。 I myself didn't find much of interest， even as far as a book about a particular time in America。 。。。more

Adam ，

If you're after a book that will give you a headache but kind of in a good way， this is it。 Hectic， vaguely anxiety inducing and hard to put down， I'd recommend anyone read it once， but only once。 If you're after a book that will give you a headache but kind of in a good way， this is it。 Hectic， vaguely anxiety inducing and hard to put down， I'd recommend anyone read it once， but only once。 。。。more

Ryan Billard ，

This book kinda sucks sometimes。 The last chapter is some real dogshit。 Jack should have written a few less chapters。

Ansana ，

Why was this on my TBR？

Spencer ，

Shitty people making shitty decisions at light speed。 It's like the author was in a competition to say the most words with the least amount of depth and meaning behind them。 Shitty people making shitty decisions at light speed。 It's like the author was in a competition to say the most words with the least amount of depth and meaning behind them。 。。。more

Katie ，

Easily one of the worst books I’ve ever read。 Only finished it for the satisfaction of giving it one star。 Wish I could give it zero。Sal and his ‘gang’ aren’t half as interesting as they seem to think they are。 The entire book is a bunch of boring stories about people getting drunk and making bad decisions。 At times it reads more like a Google Maps list of directions to California rather than anything else。 Kerouac’s writing style may have been therapeutic for him， but completely fails to offer Easily one of the worst books I’ve ever read。 Only finished it for the satisfaction of giving it one star。 Wish I could give it zero。Sal and his ‘gang’ aren’t half as interesting as they seem to think they are。 The entire book is a bunch of boring stories about people getting drunk and making bad decisions。 At times it reads more like a Google Maps list of directions to California rather than anything else。 Kerouac’s writing style may have been therapeutic for him， but completely fails to offer anything worthwhile to the reader。 Pretentious， deeply vain， and unforgivably limited。 。。。more

Kathy Y ，

Well that was a serious chore to read。

Ariana Simões ，

Pretentious， boring and disturbing。 My dislike for this book might be a result of my own anachronism and inability to place myself at this time and state of mind but I just think that overall， lusting over 13 year old girls and fucking 15 year old Mexican girls who need the money isn't fun。 Ruining several women lifes and then run away to "hit the road" isn't fun。 Constantly ask your family for money cause you spent it all on booze and hookers isn't fun。 Besides all this， I just can't truly wrap Pretentious， boring and disturbing。 My dislike for this book might be a result of my own anachronism and inability to place myself at this time and state of mind but I just think that overall， lusting over 13 year old girls and fucking 15 year old Mexican girls who need the money isn't fun。 Ruining several women lifes and then run away to "hit the road" isn't fun。 Constantly ask your family for money cause you spent it all on booze and hookers isn't fun。 Besides all this， I just can't truly wrap my mind about the racial views on this。 Marginalization was only fun cause they never truly felt it and whenever they were close to it， they would comeback to the white american culture safeplace that they so "despised"。 These guys weren't cool。 They needed intensive mental therapy。 。。。more

Aušra Urbanavičiūtė ，

The disorganized way the book was written was a thing I had to get used to but in a way fits the story and the careless characters and their relationships。 Overall it is a worthwhile read and gives the reader some perspective on the difficult times in mid 20th century。 However reading it， a feel of disconnect was ever present， this is regarding the racism， sexism and homophobia ever so present in the story。 Nonetheless the intricate and almost hallucinatory descriptions of trips， dialogues and i The disorganized way the book was written was a thing I had to get used to but in a way fits the story and the careless characters and their relationships。 Overall it is a worthwhile read and gives the reader some perspective on the difficult times in mid 20th century。 However reading it， a feel of disconnect was ever present， this is regarding the racism， sexism and homophobia ever so present in the story。 Nonetheless the intricate and almost hallucinatory descriptions of trips， dialogues and inner monologues have a poetic feel to them and kept bringing me back to the small， ugly and fascinating details of life。 It gave me， as a reader in my mid 20's a light feeling of awe mixed with melancholy and made me want to take a trip like that too。 。。。more

Diego Salgar ，

Desde los ojos de un niño， asistimos a la belleza de lo que es， una belleza que no censura nada。 Pero， al mismo tiempo， critica la idea de progreso con la inocencia de la infancia， pero con la dureza de un autor que nos deja el sabor de la belleza como una nostalgia para quienes viven el progreso。

Travis Farnsworth ，

Tons of people talk about this book and so I was quite excited when I finally came to it and it was an incredibly dull book in which there is no or near no character development。 Glad I read it so now I can trash it。 haha。

Tom Wilkes ，

I just didn't get it。 For a book about the open road it went absolutely nowhere。 It didn't such much describe people and places as it did name drop them and I found myself bored I just didn't get it。 For a book about the open road it went absolutely nowhere。 It didn't such much describe people and places as it did name drop them and I found myself bored 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=On the Road

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=On the Road&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,On the Road&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0