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Andrew M
  • Rated 5 stars

Haunting and harrowing self-examination by Kerouac of the dual demons of alcoholism and anxiety. Using the dramatic beauty of Big Sur, he searches for answers to his problems at the continental edge. He finds something at the end of his journey, but what that is depends on the reader's experiences.

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  • Max O
      • Rated 3 stars

    Surprised he got through his alcoholism to be able to put this book together. Harrowing in its effects.

    Max O wrote this review Wednesday, April 3, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    Paul Terence Madden
      • Rated 5 stars

    You have to read them all.

    Paul Terence Madden wrote this review Monday, February 25, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    Alexander Steele
      • Rated 3 stars

    Having read On the Road, Big Sur was difficult to read. It was like watching a golden hero whither away in torment without help. Kerouac in the novel is sick of himself, the "King of the Beats" and needs to escape himself, so he takes off into Big Sur by himself to his friend's cabin to chill out. He is also trying to escape alcohol and stress. Things appear to go well, get worse, get better, and end happy. Then I remembered how Kerouac's life actually ended after the novel and felt only sadness.

    Alexander Steele wrote this review Tuesday, February 12, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    Jim A Coyne
      • Rated 4 stars

    One way to fall apart

    Jim A Coyne wrote this review Monday, November 26, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    shelly wells
      • Rated 4 stars

    my favorite of kerouac's memoir's

    shelly wells wrote this review Wednesday, October 31, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    ben
      • Rated 3 stars

    A very honest, intense look at Kerouac near the end of his life when his drinking was near its worst. I think it's an extremely intimate book. Also, the style is different, he uses dashes instead of periods which is a fun change of pace.

    ben wrote this review Wednesday, August 1, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    Josephus Vigilanticus
      • Rated 4 stars

    Kerouac tearing down his own ego. Despises being the king of the beats by this point in his life. One of the best endings of a book I've ever read. Awesome and brutally honest.

    Josephus Vigilanticus wrote this review Tuesday, July 10, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    Lise Lyng Falkenberg
      • Rated 3 stars

    How do you come to terms with your own myth?

    Lise Lyng Falkenberg wrote this review Friday, June 15, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    Horrible Sanity Library
      • Rated 0 stars

    Big Sur is a humane, precise account of the extraordinary ravages of alcohol delirium tremens on Kerouac....At the peak of his suffering humorous genius, he wrote through his misery to end with Sea, a brilliant poem appended on the hallucinatory sounds of the Pacific Ocean at Big Sur. --Allen Ginsberg

    Horrible Sanity Library wrote this review Thursday, June 14, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
    nohigher
      • Rated 5 stars

    Ok, high school and college are behind me and I still have a huge literary crush on Kerouac-- so I'm going to assume that's because he is actually incredible and not because I am a mopey hippie.

    nohigher wrote this review Sunday, January 29, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No