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13th out of 134 books
—
69 voters
Queer
Originally written in 1952 but not published till 1985, "Queer" is an enigma - both an unflinching autobiographical self-portrait and a coruscatingly political novel, Burroughs' only realist love story and a montage of comic-grotesque fantasies that paved the way for his masterpiece, "Naked Lunch". Set in Mexico City during the early fifties, "Queer" follows William Lee's...more
Paperback, 160 pages
Published
by Penguin Books
(first published 1985)
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Here's the thing that puzzles me about this book: why was it not published until 1985 while the far, far more offensive Naked Lunch was published (not without obstacles) in 1959? One idea is that Burroughs put the manuscript for Queer away for many years and chose not to revisit it because it reminded him of a extremely terrible time in his life, the time surrounding the well-known (and unfortunately adapted to the screen) accidental killing of his wife during a drunken game of William Tell (a "...more
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seriously, Lee, will you give it a rest? stop trying to get into the pants of that straight guy. get some dignity. Lee, i hate to tell you this, but you make me a little sick. not only are you pointless, you are desperate. that is highly unattractive. you surround yourself with the same decay that is present in your world-view. and when that isn't enough, you seek out even more decay, until the novel becomes a travelogue of depressing decay, decay, decay. all the while trying pathetically to suc...more
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Certain “cult” writing earns this status because the prose is so transparent and simple it instantly appeals to teenage males done with Easton Ellis and Kerouac who want to up their shock quotient before attempting to read Gravity’s Rainbow for the first and last time. Queer fits the bill except, by today’s standards, the book is a little prude in tight Speedos with its danglies between its thighs asking us to love it if we’d only give it a chance. Will Lee is a homosexual-in-training in pursuit...more
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Lee, Chapter 4: "Got an idea for a new dish. Take a live pig and throw it into a very hot oven so the pig is roasted outside and when you cut into it, it's still alive and twitching inside. Or, if we run a dramatic joint, a screaming pig covered with burning brandy rushes out of the kitchen and dies right by your chair. You can reach down and pull off the crispy, crackly ears and eat them with your cocktails."
Junky is tougher, and Naked Lunch is weirder, but this is the best Burroughs' book I've...more
Junky is tougher, and Naked Lunch is weirder, but this is the best Burroughs' book I've...more
Decay pervades this novel. I thought it was merely that I had purchased a fairly old yet never used book and that was where the sense of decrepitude emanates, but then I realized it is the odorous imagery Burroughs' invokes of Mexico City and sundry South American locales. From the bars to the characters, the feeling that some elegance has been shatteringly lost, some refinement irrevocably misplaced leaks from the text. This thrilling (if noxious) interplay of word and action lends itself well...more
Queer provides an almost perfect transitional piece between the near-realist style of Junk and the surreal cut-up of Naked Lunch, whilst treading some of the same autobiographical terrain of The Yage Letters (Burrough's search for the ultimate high, the 1st world Westerner in the third world). Whilst Junk was written during one of Burroughs's clean spells, Queer was written whilst he was using again. Queer follows William Lee, a portrait of Burroughs, as he prowls a Mexico inhabited by all manne...more
As Queer is the first novel I've read of Burroughs, I do not think I shall read another.
Probably not a model text as it went unpublished for so long and isn't Burroughs's most popular, Queer gave me a glimpse of Burroughs's character Lee (or rather a glimpse of himself) and I don't like him. I found it so difficult to empathize with Lee as he gave an air of detached loftiness mixed with the scent of opiates, cheap tequila, and sexual hunger. So full of himself and so needy, Lee is a character th...more
Probably not a model text as it went unpublished for so long and isn't Burroughs's most popular, Queer gave me a glimpse of Burroughs's character Lee (or rather a glimpse of himself) and I don't like him. I found it so difficult to empathize with Lee as he gave an air of detached loftiness mixed with the scent of opiates, cheap tequila, and sexual hunger. So full of himself and so needy, Lee is a character th...more
A William S. Burroughs novel that had been written just after his controversial novel "Junky" except it never got to see the light of day until the 1980's when, frankly, it was safe to publish it (and Burroughs finished the text). The idea that Burroughs even wrote this account of a homo-sexual relationship that spans continents and also inhabits heavy drug use and other topics that would be very played upon for our white picket fence society of post war America in late 40's early 50's, is just...more
This was the third book selected for the guys book club here in Mexico and it was a real interesting read. Definitely from a genre that I haven’t had any exposure too and i enjoyed learning more about William S. BurroughsBurroughs and Jack KerouacKerouac (who I regularly site as one of my favorites). Those guys moved to Mexico and just, well...they must have had some crazy stories. Definitely pushing the envelope.
Rambling at parts and too discombobulated (undoubtedly due to “Henry”) to really fo...more
Rambling at parts and too discombobulated (undoubtedly due to “Henry”) to really fo...more
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Sep 25, 2011
Rev. Mysterium
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
addiction-issues,
adult-themed,
adventure,
autobiography-biography,
classics,
consistantly-great-author,
controversial,
counter-culture,
favourites,
great-cover-art,
hard-to-put-down,
homophobic-racist-sexist-themes,
lgbt-queer-alternative-issues,
live-and-learn,
non-fiction,
quick-read,
relationships,
strength-from-struggle,
subject-for-debate,
the-beat-generation,
twisted-humour,
ya-appeal
This is an interesting look into the heart and hormones of William S. Burroughs. In many ways it is quite sad how being a member of a counter-culture group back in an era where the homophobia and persecution of those who were not WASP's was violent and deadly stunted the expression and romantic feelings of a gay man. It is equally as sad, how little this nation has changed with his hatred and judgement of people.
You come away with a feeling of bleak sadness for Burroughs that all of the love he...more
You come away with a feeling of bleak sadness for Burroughs that all of the love he...more
William S Burroughsin romaani Hämy (Queer, Elina Koskelinin mainiosti suomentamana) on erinomaisen mielenkiintoinen ja onnistunut kirja monellakin tapaa. Ensinnäkin kirjailija on jo kulttimaineeseen noussut beat-sukupolven keskeisimpiä klassikkokirjailijoita. Toisekseen hänen tapansa käsitellä avoimen myönteisesti sekä päihteitä että homoseksuaalisuutta oli aikaansa edellä – ja on varmaan vieläkin.
Burroughsin kerronta on ihailtavan pysäyttävää, ja se onnistuu ani harvalta nykykirjailijalta. Pääh...more
Burroughsin kerronta on ihailtavan pysäyttävää, ja se onnistuu ani harvalta nykykirjailijalta. Pääh...more
Okay, Okay. I wouldn't go so far as to call myself 'homophobic' but let's just say I feel slightly uncomfortable reading a book with the title of Queer on a crowded train. And I am not talking about any standard commuter train. I am talking about a jam-packed sushi-fest of people that is the Tokyo commuter train. But I realize that it's nonsense to feel that way. Who cares?
I'm a heterosexual man but do have some friends who are homosexual/lesbian and am totally cool being around them. Have no p...more
I'm a heterosexual man but do have some friends who are homosexual/lesbian and am totally cool being around them. Have no p...more
(...)
Si nos centramos en la trama, Lee (homosexual, drogadicto, algo obsesivo), el álter ego de Burroughs, se mueve entre México y Panamá, de suburbio en suburbio y de garito en garito, con gente de todo tipo.
Lee quiere conquistar de alguna manera a Allerton, un tipo casi indiferente, casi impasible, casi impersonal. Casi, creo. Lee parte, junto con él, en busca del yage o ayahuasca, una droga capaz de controlar a otras personas, su cerebro... Alguna forma extraña de telepatía. Esto le servirá p...more
Si nos centramos en la trama, Lee (homosexual, drogadicto, algo obsesivo), el álter ego de Burroughs, se mueve entre México y Panamá, de suburbio en suburbio y de garito en garito, con gente de todo tipo.
Lee quiere conquistar de alguna manera a Allerton, un tipo casi indiferente, casi impasible, casi impersonal. Casi, creo. Lee parte, junto con él, en busca del yage o ayahuasca, una droga capaz de controlar a otras personas, su cerebro... Alguna forma extraña de telepatía. Esto le servirá p...more
Kitabin anakarakterinin lakirdilarini sagdan soldan tanidigi zavalli, edilgen bir bar arkadasiymis gibi dinlerken hic tanimadiginiz, aslinda merak da etmediginiz birisinin lakirdilarini da dinlerken buluyorsunuz kendinizi. Peki bu densiz kim? Cevirmen. Cevirmenin (ya da cevirmenlerin) Moda anilari, cevirmenin ingilizcesini sevdigi icin cevirmedigi argo sozcukler, cevirmenin once bizi ilgilendirecegine karar verip acikladigi sonra gerisini merak etmeyecegimize karar verip bunu cekinmeden soyleyip...more
This was Burroughs' most personal book I think. There is something almost embarrassing--or maybe the right word would be: uneasy, about this story, as if I were peeping directly into Burroughs' cellar door.
The pacing is pitch perfect, the choice of what is and isn't revealed is brilliant. The tip of the iceberg is visible always, but all of the real story is deep and cold and under you all the time.
The main character, Lee, is sort of pathetic, sick, and desperate, yet, he's also intelligent an...more
The pacing is pitch perfect, the choice of what is and isn't revealed is brilliant. The tip of the iceberg is visible always, but all of the real story is deep and cold and under you all the time.
The main character, Lee, is sort of pathetic, sick, and desperate, yet, he's also intelligent an...more
I really enjoyed this book. "Queer" is interesting to me as you can see Burroughs' evolution as a writer and the novel also has a foreboding quality that many attribute to Burroughs' accidental murder of his common law wife. The actual plot of the book is pretty basic, it involves William Lee's infatuation with a young man in Mexico. The novel is unflinching in it's portrayal of blind lust; Burroughs' character makes a fool of himself on many occasions, but the novel shouldn't just be seen as on...more
Queer, while not published until the mid-1980s, was obviously written around the same time as Burroughs' first book, Junky, as many passages from the latter had found their way into the former. I enjoyed this book a bit more than Junky, however, because unlike its predecessor, Queer actually reads like a novel and less like a memoir, containing an actual plot and characters that actually take on shape and life.
This isn't your average LGBT fiction, however. As always, Burroughs is unsympathetic a...more
This isn't your average LGBT fiction, however. As always, Burroughs is unsympathetic a...more
"Queer" picks up essentially where "Junky" ends, with the protagonist, Burroughs alter-ego Bill Lee, in Mexico City. Having cut down on his junk habit, Lee wanders from bar to bar, drinking and talking. He becomes ever-more infatuated with Allerton, a young man who he has a relationship with, but who shares little of the obsessive ardour that Lee feels. In his attempts to get people, and especially Allerton, to pay attention to him, Lee begins telling various fantastic stories, what he calls "th...more
Often funny and touching, this is my favorite Burroughs book. A reader will feel sympathy for the devil in the protagonist of Lee, despite the fact that he wants to find a drug to turn boys into sex slaves. Seriously, he is that pathetic and sad.
Two of my favorite quotes that show the softer, gentlemanly side of Burroughs are found here:
1. "The rudeness of many Americans depressed him, a rudeness based on a solid ignorance of the whole concept of manners, and the proposition that for social purp...more
Two of my favorite quotes that show the softer, gentlemanly side of Burroughs are found here:
1. "The rudeness of many Americans depressed him, a rudeness based on a solid ignorance of the whole concept of manners, and the proposition that for social purp...more
This book has been sitting on my library shelves for a couple of years untouched. Since it was William Burroughs, and looked like a fairly quick read, I decided to pick it up. Burroughs is one of the seminal American authors of the underground gay experience, right? I thought it would be like reading Alan Hollinghurst on cocaine - something I was looking forward to.
But I was highly disappointed. The novel's plot revolves around gay two heroin addicts, William Lee and Eugene Allerton. Lee's attra...more
But I was highly disappointed. The novel's plot revolves around gay two heroin addicts, William Lee and Eugene Allerton. Lee's attra...more
I've thought over the years that I am not very well read and that I have a small capacity for older and classical literature. I think that being *able* to finish the book is a testament to a) the readability of the book, and b) some reading ability on my part.
The book itself was unremarkable but only because I am from the time that I am from. The book, in a historical context, is probably quite something to behold; the main character is "a man afflicted with both acute heroin withdrawal and roma...more
The book itself was unremarkable but only because I am from the time that I am from. The book, in a historical context, is probably quite something to behold; the main character is "a man afflicted with both acute heroin withdrawal and roma...more
This was a selection in the book club that I am in here in Vallarta. Third one so far and we are 0-3 on good books so far. The conversation at our get-togethers has been great though, so that has redeemed our choices (including my own).
I think this book would have been more interesting if I lived in Ecuador, not Mexico, as I feel it spends more time exploring that setting than the Mexico City one.
The one quality I did enjoy, at times, in this book was its detailed description of setting. Seedy...more
I think this book would have been more interesting if I lived in Ecuador, not Mexico, as I feel it spends more time exploring that setting than the Mexico City one.
The one quality I did enjoy, at times, in this book was its detailed description of setting. Seedy...more
Read it from curiosity, knowing that he was on of the important figures of the beat generation. Not impressed.
***
citita mai mult de curiozitate, stiind ca e un reprezentant destul de marcant al generatiei beat. neimpresionata in mod deosebit.
***
citita mai mult de curiozitate, stiind ca e un reprezentant destul de marcant al generatiei beat. neimpresionata in mod deosebit.
I plowed through Burroughs's Queer. Now I'm in a haze of junk and sex aftermath. While Junky showed how an addict's mind functions while getting off the stuff, Queer shows the life of recovering addicts. Apparently, recovering addicts go to Mexico, where law is obsolete and drugs are still prevalent. Then, from Mexico, they travel to South America in search of the trippy psychadelic mind-reading Yage. This book most likely does not apply to all addicts, in whatever stage of recovery or use they...more
I enjoy a book about a hot mess, So I was more than a little excited when I came across this beauty at the thrift store. I mean how can you pass up a book with a penis on the cover written by a noted author?
I began reading Queer, to look at how Burroughs used his real life to write "fictional" stories. I have been struggling with how to do this in my own writing, so I am seeking out models. This is a good model for me, because I'm don't think any of the other "characters" in this story would be...more
I began reading Queer, to look at how Burroughs used his real life to write "fictional" stories. I have been struggling with how to do this in my own writing, so I am seeking out models. This is a good model for me, because I'm don't think any of the other "characters" in this story would be...more
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I think the title of this book is a bit of a misnomer, and it appeals to everyone, regardless of sexuality. Why? Because everyone has been in the situation where they find themselves pining over, or maybe even loving someone, who doesn't reciprocate emotionally. The fact that Burroughs is gay, is irrelevent, because the hurt and sadness is real, and everyone has felt it. I found myself really identifying with Lee in this way, more so than I could in Junkie ... and Allerton read like a Bret Easto...more
I vowed that I would read Burroughs chronologically. I picked up Queer almost an hour after finishing Junky and I am in awe. First, I would recommend, if you aren't a Burroughs enthusiast, to take advantage of the introduction. Penguin's 25th anniversary edition has an introduction by Oliver Harris that is crucial when taking on any of Burrough's work. In Queer you notice the shift of narrative writing to the more abstract and surreal style Burrough's claims to fame. It is a masterpiece and it's...more
Beautifully written and surprisingly moving with a relatively straightforward, lateral narrative, Queer was not as challenging a read as I expected. Set in Mexico City, the reader is introduced to a host of quirky, bar lingering characters before being whisked off to Panama then Ecuador, where the main character, Lee, takes his (uninterested) love interest, Allerton, on a fruitless quest for the drug, Yage. For me, the story lost direction when they travelled to South America. But, it is a thour...more
I think I need to read Naked Lunch (and maybe more) before I can say what I think about this book. I picked this up as a result of a passing reference to Burroughs in something else I was reading. My interest was piqued, and I am still interested to know more about him.
But this book read more as a chronological series of snippets, a rough journal, or a jotting-down-of-things-before-I-forget, that was never returned to for a filling out. And full disclosure, I have not yet read Burroughs original...more
But this book read more as a chronological series of snippets, a rough journal, or a jotting-down-of-things-before-I-forget, that was never returned to for a filling out. And full disclosure, I have not yet read Burroughs original...more
A short read that provided me with little more than a sense of a Burrough's sexual frustration. The book jacket led me to believe that this would provide more insight into the persecution of homosexuals in 1950s America but it was more of an autobiographical treatment of sexual frustration tinged with societal stigmatization. Burrough's attempt to reduce feelings of attraction and lust to staunchly realist terms has the overall effect of making the reader feel generally uncomfortable and embarra...more
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William Seward Burroughs Jnr. always looked like the straight man among the Beat Generation, but his writing - violent, satirical, scatological, pornographic - makes the others look tame.
Burroughs was born into middle-class respectability and after studying English at Harvard and medicine in Vienna, trained as a glider pilot with the American military but was discharged as unfit for service in 194...more
More about William S. Burroughs...
Burroughs was born into middle-class respectability and after studying English at Harvard and medicine in Vienna, trained as a glider pilot with the American military but was discharged as unfit for service in 194...more
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“In deep sadness there is no place for sentimentality. It is as final as the mountains: a fact. There it is. When you realize it you cannot complain.”
—
9 people liked it
“The rudeness of many Americans depressed him, a rudeness based on a solid ignorance of the whole concept of manners, and on the proposition that for social purposes, all people are more or less equal and interchangeable.”
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6 people liked it
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