Book Review

Title: Women Of The Beat Generation

Author: Brenda Knight

Publisher: Conari Press   Berkeley, CA  copyright, 1996

Rating: 8

This book was a pure joy to read. I read about the men of the Beat Generation: Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, William Burroughs among others. The women are just as interesting as the men. Like their male counterparts, they tired of expectations, conformity, and the conservative society of the 1950s for freedom to be what they wanted to be. They could party, drink, love, and write.

I particularly enjoyed reading about Eileen Kaufman, Bob Kaufman's wife. Edie Parker Kerouac and Joan Haverty Kerouac, Jack ex-wives, were no slouches. They held their own in a man's world. They were tough, persistent and contributed much to the beats. Jan Kerouac's, Jack's only child, was interesting. There were some casualties. Elise Cowen, a poet who briefly dated Allen Ginsberg, ended her life at twenty- eight by jumping out of her parent's sixth floor window. It happened in 1962, not too far from where I currently reside.

I like any thing associated with the beats. Women Of The Beat Generation didn't disappoint.  Reading about some women I never read or heard about was a special treat. I borrowed this book out the library but will purchase a copy for my personal library.