Ken Kesey

Author profile

born

in La Junta, Colorado, The United States

September 17, 1935

died

November 10, 2001

gender

male

genre

Literature & Fiction

About this author

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American writer, who gained world fame with his novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1962, filmed 1975). In the 1960s, Kesey became a counterculture hero and a guru of psychedelic drugs with Timothy Leary. Kesey has been called the Pied Piper, who changed the beat generation into the hippie movement.

Ken Kesey was born in La Junta, CO, and brought up in Eugene, OR. Kesey spent his early years hunting, fishing, swimming; he learned to box and wrestle, and he was a star football player. He studied at the University of Oregon, where he acted in college plays. On graduating he won a scholarship to Stanford University. Kesey soon dropped out, joined the counterculture movement, and began experimenting with drugs. In 1956 he married his school s...more

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Ken Kesey's Books

Average rating: 4.15 · 266,360 ratings · 4,749 reviews · 32 distinct works · Similar authors

	One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest 4.15 of 5 stars 4.15 avg rating — 253,447 ratings — published 1962 — 189 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sometimes a Great Notion 4.21 of 5 stars 4.21 avg rating — 9,433 ratings — published 1964 — 28 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sailor Song 3.47 of 5 stars 3.47 avg rating — 1,194 ratings — published 1992 — 9 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Demon Box 3.51 of 5 stars 3.51 avg rating — 844 ratings — published 1986 — 12 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Last Go Round: A Real Western by Ken Kesey, Ken Babbs 3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 avg rating — 332 ratings — published 1994 — 5 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest 4.32 of 5 stars 4.32 avg rating — 139 ratings	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Acid Tests 3.57 of 5 stars 3.57 avg rating — 144 ratings	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Further Inquiry by Ken Kesey, Ron Bevirt (Photographer) 3.62 of 5 stars 3.62 avg rating — 141 ratings — published 1990 — 2 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Kesey's Garage Sale 3.6 of 5 stars 3.60 avg rating — 126 ratings — published 1973 — 3 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Kesey's Jail Journal by Ken Kesey, Ed McClanahan (Introduction) 3.74 of 5 stars 3.74 avg rating — 115 ratings — published 2003	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Ken Kesey…

Quotes by Ken Kesey

“Man, when you lose your laugh you lose your footing.”
― Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

tags: relationships

1,481 people liked it

“It isn't by getting out of the world that we become enlightened, but by getting into the world…by getting so tuned in that we can ride the waves of our existence and never get tossed because we become the waves.”
― Ken Kesey, Kesey's Garage Sale

tags: enlightenment, existence

1,388 people liked it

“All I know is this: nobody's very big in the first place, and it looks to me like everybody spends their whole life tearing everybody else down.”
― Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

tags: psychology

265 people liked it

See all Ken Kesey's quotes »

Polls

What would you like to read in December ?

The Twelve by Justin Cronin

8 votes, 32.0%

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

6 votes, 24.0%

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey

6 votes, 24.0%

Lost Boy Lost Girl by Peter Straub

2 votes, 8.0%

Handling the Undead by John Ajvide Lindqvist

1 vote, 4.0%

The Descent by Jeff Long

1 vote, 4.0%

Think of a Number by John Verdon

1 vote, 4.0%

Lizard Skin by Carsten Stroud

0 votes, 0.0%

25 total votes

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Ken Kesey

Author profile

combine editionsKen Kesey's Books

Quotes by Ken Kesey

Polls

Topics Mentioning This Author

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Ken Kesey's Books