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Subterranean Kerouac: The Hidden Life of Jack Kerouac
The editor of Kerouac's final two novels offers a revealing portrait of Jack Kerouac and the intense, inner life that inspired his work, discussing his troubled youth, alcoholism, and homosexual relationships. 30,000 first printing. Tour.
- GenresBiographyNonfiction
435 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
February 28, 2010
I had a Beat phase in high school that I'm mostly embarrassed about by this point. Though I'm ever so occasionally able to look back fondly on some of the romanticism of it all. I watched this atrocious interview with Kerouac on Italian television where he's just shit-faced and stupid and arrogant as fuck and it really made me feel embarrassed for my 15 year old self who thought Kerouac was the best. But I also find that the only time it's really excusable to be way into the Beat stuff is as a teenager. It's got "TEENAGER" written all over it. But adults who hang onto it obsessively strike me as people not too willing to really reflect on things or explore the world outside of the Kerouac-Ginsberg-Burroughs-et al mythos.
I was 14 when I read On the Road and it just worked for me somehow. I mean, as my disclaimer says in all my "reviews" of Kerouac's books:
"It spoke to me in that way that people will describe books like On The Road and Catcher in the Rye as speaking to them and others for as long as those books continue to be spoken about. There's no real mystery as to why these kind of books appeal to so many people crossing/constructing that cliche, proverbial bridge between childhood and adulthood. I can still remember how pleasurable and edifying it was to read these books but I remember it with varying levels of self-embarrassment."
Back to mining my past and my past remarks about these things: I would say Kerouac was something I wallowed in more than felt to be liberating. I guess it gave me a warm feeling to "identify" with certain things he had to say. Most of it is really about him drinking a lot and blabbering on about Buddhism and Catholicism (he consider himself both...yeah) and being really sad or euphoric. At least that's how I remember it now. It's basically hanging out inside the mind of a manic-depressive with substance abuse issues, hence, the appeal to me as a teenager. Plus it has all that anti-authoritarianism running through it ("TEENAGER"). Some of the Walden-y stuff I think I still can respect--my favorite was Big Sur which was about him drying out alone in a cabin, and then it takes a dive into delirium tremens and paranoia and more drunken irresponsibility. Also, his ego was insanely puffed up sometimes (the manic part of the manic-depression, I guess). He spoke about himself like he was the greatest writer of all time somewhat often, if my memory serves me well (which it may not as it's been about ten years since I read any of his work).
So this was another bio I read back then which I found a bit more fascinating than the one by Barry Miles (King of the Beats, ugh). It focuses on Kerouac's sexuality and its contribution to his overall "suffering artist" brand of an emotional life, his fatal alcoholism, etc. The story (which is probably an exaggerated version of the truth at best but a good yarn nonetheless) that's been reiterated in multiple takes on Kerouac is that his first orgasm was experienced in the bathroom of his childhood home as his mother and sister were out looking for his lost dog. His mother called up to the window to inform him that his dog had been hit by a car and killed. Thus, sexual ecstasy and the sorrow of death were intertwined. It's fairly heavy handed and clumsy psychoanalysis but makes for a good childhood psychology type of centerpiece for a biography about a tortured soul figure such as Jack Kerouac.
I read the book so long ago now that all I can really remember about it is that it's essentially a chronological retelling of his life but with more focus on his bisexual experiences, his condemnation of bi and homosexuality, his unenthusiastic womanizing and of course his widely written about and extremely classic Oedipal relationship with his mother.
This kind of recognition of the disparity between my tastes of years past and the present really is a prime example for me in realizing how much people really change. We really are never the same person from moment to moment, and the years outstretched in our wake are proof positive that the unity of "the self" is a deeply convincing sleight of hand more than anything else.
I was 14 when I read On the Road and it just worked for me somehow. I mean, as my disclaimer says in all my "reviews" of Kerouac's books:
"It spoke to me in that way that people will describe books like On The Road and Catcher in the Rye as speaking to them and others for as long as those books continue to be spoken about. There's no real mystery as to why these kind of books appeal to so many people crossing/constructing that cliche, proverbial bridge between childhood and adulthood. I can still remember how pleasurable and edifying it was to read these books but I remember it with varying levels of self-embarrassment."
Back to mining my past and my past remarks about these things: I would say Kerouac was something I wallowed in more than felt to be liberating. I guess it gave me a warm feeling to "identify" with certain things he had to say. Most of it is really about him drinking a lot and blabbering on about Buddhism and Catholicism (he consider himself both...yeah) and being really sad or euphoric. At least that's how I remember it now. It's basically hanging out inside the mind of a manic-depressive with substance abuse issues, hence, the appeal to me as a teenager. Plus it has all that anti-authoritarianism running through it ("TEENAGER"). Some of the Walden-y stuff I think I still can respect--my favorite was Big Sur which was about him drying out alone in a cabin, and then it takes a dive into delirium tremens and paranoia and more drunken irresponsibility. Also, his ego was insanely puffed up sometimes (the manic part of the manic-depression, I guess). He spoke about himself like he was the greatest writer of all time somewhat often, if my memory serves me well (which it may not as it's been about ten years since I read any of his work).
So this was another bio I read back then which I found a bit more fascinating than the one by Barry Miles (King of the Beats, ugh). It focuses on Kerouac's sexuality and its contribution to his overall "suffering artist" brand of an emotional life, his fatal alcoholism, etc. The story (which is probably an exaggerated version of the truth at best but a good yarn nonetheless) that's been reiterated in multiple takes on Kerouac is that his first orgasm was experienced in the bathroom of his childhood home as his mother and sister were out looking for his lost dog. His mother called up to the window to inform him that his dog had been hit by a car and killed. Thus, sexual ecstasy and the sorrow of death were intertwined. It's fairly heavy handed and clumsy psychoanalysis but makes for a good childhood psychology type of centerpiece for a biography about a tortured soul figure such as Jack Kerouac.
I read the book so long ago now that all I can really remember about it is that it's essentially a chronological retelling of his life but with more focus on his bisexual experiences, his condemnation of bi and homosexuality, his unenthusiastic womanizing and of course his widely written about and extremely classic Oedipal relationship with his mother.
This kind of recognition of the disparity between my tastes of years past and the present really is a prime example for me in realizing how much people really change. We really are never the same person from moment to moment, and the years outstretched in our wake are proof positive that the unity of "the self" is a deeply convincing sleight of hand more than anything else.
August 16, 2021
More salacious than it needs to be, but ultimately an interesting and thorough companion book to the Charters bio, which I read almost 20 years ago. I'm torn between whether to describe this book as "unflinching" or "sensationalized" in its overall portrayal of Kerouac; regardless, Amburn touches on a lot of material that others have glossed over. The book culminates in a blow-by-blow description of Kerouac's death, which has never been done in any other biography, as far as I know. And it is nightmarish.
"Nightmarish" is also a good descriptor of the behavior of Kerouac and much of his ilk. And yet, I remain fascinated by their manic swings from one extreme to another; at their best, the Beats epitomized youthful exuberance, freedom, and romantic self-mythologizing for which I will always have an appreciation; at their worst, well, they represented narcissism at its most self-destructive, devastating those they purported to love. And I feel like that's putting it lightly.
Kerouac -- the center of this historical literary maelstrom that, as of this writing, is survived by merely a lone central figure (Gary Snyder) and a couple outliers (Charles Plymell? Ed Sanders?) -- will always capture my imagination, in no small part because his books (namely Dharma Bums and Lonesome Traveler) were so central in motivating my own travels in my youth (and the fact that I realized you could use the US government to fund such travels, as I took a job with the NPS to realize my first trip out West).
But Kerouac's story, no matter who tells it -- Amburn, Charters, Carolyn Cassady, Kerouac himself -- is heartbreaking. So tread carefully. Read Amburn's account as a cautionary tale. Don't get too caught up in the myth or the reality. Because the myth is a beautiful, unattainable lie, and the reality is that Kerouac's spirit was done in by crushing disillusionment after his spectacular life still fell far short of his own aggrandization of self, friends, family, and a shaky belief system. There is nothing but sorrow and stunted growth if either myth or reality speak to you. Kill your darlings, kill your idols, start with Kerouac. Jesus, I'm 41 years old and I'm talking to myself on Goodreads.
"Nightmarish" is also a good descriptor of the behavior of Kerouac and much of his ilk. And yet, I remain fascinated by their manic swings from one extreme to another; at their best, the Beats epitomized youthful exuberance, freedom, and romantic self-mythologizing for which I will always have an appreciation; at their worst, well, they represented narcissism at its most self-destructive, devastating those they purported to love. And I feel like that's putting it lightly.
Kerouac -- the center of this historical literary maelstrom that, as of this writing, is survived by merely a lone central figure (Gary Snyder) and a couple outliers (Charles Plymell? Ed Sanders?) -- will always capture my imagination, in no small part because his books (namely Dharma Bums and Lonesome Traveler) were so central in motivating my own travels in my youth (and the fact that I realized you could use the US government to fund such travels, as I took a job with the NPS to realize my first trip out West).
But Kerouac's story, no matter who tells it -- Amburn, Charters, Carolyn Cassady, Kerouac himself -- is heartbreaking. So tread carefully. Read Amburn's account as a cautionary tale. Don't get too caught up in the myth or the reality. Because the myth is a beautiful, unattainable lie, and the reality is that Kerouac's spirit was done in by crushing disillusionment after his spectacular life still fell far short of his own aggrandization of self, friends, family, and a shaky belief system. There is nothing but sorrow and stunted growth if either myth or reality speak to you. Kill your darlings, kill your idols, start with Kerouac. Jesus, I'm 41 years old and I'm talking to myself on Goodreads.
July 14, 2008
Amburn's book is correct in its contention that Kerouac's sexuality is fascinating and needs more attention. Unfortunately, this book treats the subject far too reductively, explaining Kerouac's closeted sexuality as the single missing key to the author's alcoholism and early death, as well as reading every other detail of the author's life. On top of that, and as if to back off of the very claims he asserts, the book footnotes its claims very sloppily. Allegedly, all sorts of people in Lowell, Massachusetts, Kerouac's hometown, knew he was secretly gay. But when you try to find out who exactly said what, it's impossible, given Amburn's practice of only footnoting once every four or five paragraphs, then listing a number of sources, largely personal interviews, so that little can be directly identified and nothing can be confirmed. Amburn's second biggest source is the novels themselves, which he interprets narrowly, to confirm his thesis. Amburn himself was Kerouac's editor late in his career, and claims this gives him special insight into the author. But a limited acquaintance can also give someone a skewed picture of a person. That's a charitable reading. A less charitable reading is that Amburn was deliberately out to exploit his subject for personal gain, whatever the facts might be. The book carries you through to the end, but this is also partially because it's hard to fall asleep when you're frequently cringing.
December 27, 2017
purports to uncover Kerouacs bi-sexuality. pretty convincing. i think it had been acknowledged in the past, even by Keroauc himself he had same sex dalliances. this bio goes further to theorize Kerouac was predominantly same sex attracted and the women in his life there mostly to prove to himself he wasn't gay. This conflicted sexuality contributed to his alcoholism and intellectual withdrawal to a puzzling sort of conservatism.
June 6, 2011
I really wanted to like this book. I really did. It's another autobiography of my favorite author written by someone who knew him personally in his final years. Still, rather than being an examination of Kerouac's works and maybe what made him great, this book was written as a biography with the nearly sole intent of arguing that Kerouac was gay.
Don't get me wrong, I know that among the Beats there was a great deal of sexual freedom, and I have no doubt that Kerouac certainly had some homosexual experiences, but trying to write off the majority of his works as thinly veiled attempts at coming out is just a bit too much of a stretch based on everything else I've read about Kerouac, which is pretty damn expansive.
I did find a few interesting tidbits about Ti Jean that I hadn't heard before, but there were numerous turns that I just couldn't help but question, because they contradicted things I've heard from various firsthand sources. Still, the parts where Amburn was discussing things like Kerouac's self-doubt or even his conflicts of conscience, I feel like he really knocked it out of the park.
Overall, I just can't recommend this book as much as other Kerouac biographies I've read in the past.
Don't get me wrong, I know that among the Beats there was a great deal of sexual freedom, and I have no doubt that Kerouac certainly had some homosexual experiences, but trying to write off the majority of his works as thinly veiled attempts at coming out is just a bit too much of a stretch based on everything else I've read about Kerouac, which is pretty damn expansive.
I did find a few interesting tidbits about Ti Jean that I hadn't heard before, but there were numerous turns that I just couldn't help but question, because they contradicted things I've heard from various firsthand sources. Still, the parts where Amburn was discussing things like Kerouac's self-doubt or even his conflicts of conscience, I feel like he really knocked it out of the park.
Overall, I just can't recommend this book as much as other Kerouac biographies I've read in the past.
August 1, 2023
this book was amazing. it doesn't even have it's own Wikipedia page! wtf?
September 22, 2021
I got what I deserved for reading this book: perpetual arousal. My God, maybe one of the most sex-laden books of literary biography I’ve ever read: all about one man and his friends and lovers. According to Amburn, Kerouac keeps a sex list of not only his partners but how many times they engage. It amounts to a sexual track meet of stupendous proportions (if self-reporting is accurate): sex with men, sex with women. Maybe the man had a third testicle? Enough of that.
Because Amburn turns out to be Kerouac’s final editor, a young man attempting to make his mark in publishing, he stands to have one of the most tolerant and understanding viewpoints of the controversial author of On the Road and at least a dozen other novels. Like a number of important American authors before him, Kerouac is ahead of his time, ahead of what critics are capable of understanding. Like many writers, he must scramble for money nearly his entire life, never experiencing the adulation that is to come after his premature death, when he dies at forty-seven of alcoholism. But if anything, he remains a hero of young writers of all ages, writers who are willing to put everything on the line, to write novels the way they want to, not kowtowing to editors, publishers, or even the public. For that, yes, he is a true hero.
Because Amburn turns out to be Kerouac’s final editor, a young man attempting to make his mark in publishing, he stands to have one of the most tolerant and understanding viewpoints of the controversial author of On the Road and at least a dozen other novels. Like a number of important American authors before him, Kerouac is ahead of his time, ahead of what critics are capable of understanding. Like many writers, he must scramble for money nearly his entire life, never experiencing the adulation that is to come after his premature death, when he dies at forty-seven of alcoholism. But if anything, he remains a hero of young writers of all ages, writers who are willing to put everything on the line, to write novels the way they want to, not kowtowing to editors, publishers, or even the public. For that, yes, he is a true hero.
April 20, 2025
Unconvincing book about Kerouac's "Bi-sexuality" by his former editor. I think the clue to this book comes when Amburn told Kerouac that to sell his 60s novels he had to be leftwing and proclaim the beats led to the Civil rights movement. Later, Amburn is upset that Keroauc supported Nixon in 68, labels him a "Reactionary"!
Given that attitude, I have no doubt that Amburn used the "Kerouac was Gay" to sell this book. In any case, there's too much Amburn in the book. Too much "I" . We even get Amburn blathering about how Kerouac's so-called "Antisemitsm" offended him. Said "antisemitism" consisting of a two Kidding remarks.
Amburn doesn't provide much literary analysis of Keroauc's books. He does get into Jack's alcoholism, which seems to have been pretty serious and led to his death at 47.
Probably the most interesting part of the book details how difficult it was to get "On the Road" published in the 50s. One wonders how many good writers are unknown today because they couldn't find a NY publisher because they wrote something that didn't support the current fashion or "party line".
Given that attitude, I have no doubt that Amburn used the "Kerouac was Gay" to sell this book. In any case, there's too much Amburn in the book. Too much "I" . We even get Amburn blathering about how Kerouac's so-called "Antisemitsm" offended him. Said "antisemitism" consisting of a two Kidding remarks.
Amburn doesn't provide much literary analysis of Keroauc's books. He does get into Jack's alcoholism, which seems to have been pretty serious and led to his death at 47.
Probably the most interesting part of the book details how difficult it was to get "On the Road" published in the 50s. One wonders how many good writers are unknown today because they couldn't find a NY publisher because they wrote something that didn't support the current fashion or "party line".
February 11, 2023
This clever well-written biography comes from Kerouac's last editor. The literary references are deep. It helps to have read 1950s writers including Kerouac as background. Now that the praise is out of the way, reading about reprehensible figures erodes a corner of the soul. Even the back cover warns of seven destructive inner demons that couldn't help spill out into bad behavior. He eventually found some comfort in Buddhism, which was not entirely redeeming.
Amburn and Kerouac show great admiration for Penguin editor Malcolm Cowley. Cowley possessed a steady hand in guiding Kerouac in spite of his volatile recklessness, coaxing "On the Road" along. The biography contains seventeen significant mentions of Cowley's encouragement to Kerouac over many years.
My reason for choosing "Subterranean Kerouac" is to better understand Pittsburgher Malcolm Cowley, who lived in East Liberty, and attended local schools Liberty and Shakespeare, and graduated in Peabody High School's first class of 1915.
Amburn and Kerouac show great admiration for Penguin editor Malcolm Cowley. Cowley possessed a steady hand in guiding Kerouac in spite of his volatile recklessness, coaxing "On the Road" along. The biography contains seventeen significant mentions of Cowley's encouragement to Kerouac over many years.
My reason for choosing "Subterranean Kerouac" is to better understand Pittsburgher Malcolm Cowley, who lived in East Liberty, and attended local schools Liberty and Shakespeare, and graduated in Peabody High School's first class of 1915.
January 11, 2019
One of the best Kerouac biographies out there
May 12, 2016
It took me an eternity to finish this. I really have no idea why I didn't just give up reading it all together (stubbornness) but there it sat on my self glaring at me to finish it. Determined, I would pick it up, then toss it, put it back on my self, forget the feeling of frustration while reading it, pick it up again, start reading it where I booked marked it, then continuously repeating the previous steps. Hate not finishing what I started. Painful read, continuous eye rolling, grunts of annoyance towards the author...
I felt that it was more about the author's skewed agenda to force feed the reader Kerouac's homosexual desires, the very detailed sexual experience were unnecessary, almost like reading a porn novel in parts but not a good one. The Author tossed in moments of... hey I was a big deal too because I knew him and let me tell you every unimportant detail of conversations I had with Kerouac to prove I knew him better than anyone, (utter snobbery writing). I felt like he was just writing this for total shock value and really didn't get to the heart of who Kerouac was. Honestly no one will ever know.
Maybe Kerouac was a total shit person who was an alcoholic, racist, womanizer, anti-Semitic, homophobic who was secretly struggling with homosexual desires, gross and disgusting individual who just was lucky to write beautifully. BUT, I don't need the authors obvious opinion swaying me or do I care for his personal feelings on Kerouac's words or actions! OR, what he thought or felt about him. Just give me the facts man!
I really do hate myself for ever buying this book. Just tells you never to read about the man behind the mask. Just enjoy the best parts of them... Their art, writings or music. Don't want to bask in the sludge of their life with them. Made me want to start drinking just to get through the book, so depressing. Sad if this is the truth, which means with all of Kerouac's experiences he didn't bother to reflect or learn from any of it. Just one selfish experience after experience without caring who he hurt or used up.
I have a feeling there is more to Kerouac than what the Author betrayed him to be but maybe that's just me not accepting the truth, lol! Run from this book! Just enjoy Kerouac through his own words and not soul-suckers, fame-seekers around him.
I felt that it was more about the author's skewed agenda to force feed the reader Kerouac's homosexual desires, the very detailed sexual experience were unnecessary, almost like reading a porn novel in parts but not a good one. The Author tossed in moments of... hey I was a big deal too because I knew him and let me tell you every unimportant detail of conversations I had with Kerouac to prove I knew him better than anyone, (utter snobbery writing). I felt like he was just writing this for total shock value and really didn't get to the heart of who Kerouac was. Honestly no one will ever know.
Maybe Kerouac was a total shit person who was an alcoholic, racist, womanizer, anti-Semitic, homophobic who was secretly struggling with homosexual desires, gross and disgusting individual who just was lucky to write beautifully. BUT, I don't need the authors obvious opinion swaying me or do I care for his personal feelings on Kerouac's words or actions! OR, what he thought or felt about him. Just give me the facts man!
I really do hate myself for ever buying this book. Just tells you never to read about the man behind the mask. Just enjoy the best parts of them... Their art, writings or music. Don't want to bask in the sludge of their life with them. Made me want to start drinking just to get through the book, so depressing. Sad if this is the truth, which means with all of Kerouac's experiences he didn't bother to reflect or learn from any of it. Just one selfish experience after experience without caring who he hurt or used up.
I have a feeling there is more to Kerouac than what the Author betrayed him to be but maybe that's just me not accepting the truth, lol! Run from this book! Just enjoy Kerouac through his own words and not soul-suckers, fame-seekers around him.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 23, 2009
Can we say agenda, er..........skewed agenda!
Well it got better but, as I said, dude needs to get objective. Or maybe as they say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery cause this is surely a work of biographical fiction akin to most of Kerouac's works....minus the biographical.
Well it got better but, as I said, dude needs to get objective. Or maybe as they say imitation is the most sincere form of flattery cause this is surely a work of biographical fiction akin to most of Kerouac's works....minus the biographical.
March 18, 2016
Amazingly in-depth bio of one of America's most misunderstood writers. I've read a lot of Kerouac biographies, but I think this one has the most depth--especially for Kerouac's final years, which always seem maddeningly sketchy in other books.
May 11, 2008
the first biography i read on any of them and it definatly helped me understand their writing and everything having to do with the 'beat' thing much more.
Currently reading
August 10, 2008excellent so far if you are into gritty details about one of the most amazing writer of this 40's, 50's. written by his late editor.
June 27, 2010
very interesting.
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