Viking Press published the First Edition of Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road” in 1957, with dust jacket designed by Bill English. Since then, the book has become an American classic, and public and academic interest in Kerouac as a writer and folk character remains strong. Kerouac’s manifesto of the “Beat Generation” had a profound effect on 1950s America and the Counterculture of the 1960s. Kerouac (1942-1969) and fellow “Beat” poets such as William Burroughs and Allan Ginsberg were pitch-perfect guides through the chasm of disillusionment that opened following World War II between American materialism and propriety and the desire to break free of convention. Much like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kerouac didn’t just comment on the time in which he lived, he seemed to consume it. Not surprisingly, the two had much in common: both were young; Catholic; of little means, as defined by the times; and sexually ambivalent. Both were alcoholics who eventually died from the toll their addictions took on their bodies and souls. Despite Truman Capote’s view that his improvisational style was “typing not writing,” Kerouac remains esteemed, popular, impactful, and widely collected. Our First Editions Library facsimile copy of On the Road was published by Collectors’ Reprint, Inc.. Henry Reath, a former president and publisher of Doubleday; his wife, Mary; and Kemp Battle, who also worked at Doubleday, founded this imprint in 1987. The company, which ceased operations in the early 1990s, specialized in publishing exact facsimile replicas of the first editions of the best of 19th and 20th Century American literature, as the volumes first appeared including errata. All First Editions Library issues are identified as such on the colophon page and with “FEL” on the back jacket flap. They were limited to 2500 copies. Condition: Unread condition with very minor wear to the slipcase. Dimensions: 6.5” x 8.5” x 1.25”.
Our copy of On the Road is accompanied by a 1971 First Edition translation of Jack Kerouac: a chicken-essay by French Canadian journalist Victor-Levy Beaulieu, in which the author explores the impact of Kerouac’s French-Canadian roots on his work. Limited to 1000 copies. Condition: Unread condition with some external bumping and wear to the spine. Dimensions: 4.5” x 8” x .5”.