The Beats: A Graphic History

"This revelatory and exhilarating and funny book not only tells us of the Beat generation, but of a time when we as individuals felt truly free. It is as fresh and pertinent as the latest scholarly history only far more entertaining."—Studs Terkel

"History with a deeper perspective is the province of The Beats, a multifaceted effort led by writer Harvey Pekar, his frequent collaborator Paul Buhle and artist Ed Piskor. It delivers the texture of a movement easy to underestimate in brief biographies of touchstones like poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, novelists William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac and lesser-known lights like poet d.a. levy (an underground Cleveland icon) and mythopoeic poetess Diane di Prima . . . This fearless, substantial history entertains as it uncovers."—Carlo Wolff, The Boston Globe

"Pekar's history of the post-war literary, cultural and spiritual awakening is well researched and intended . . . Piskor is joined by such stellar artists as Kuper, Tooks, Gary Dumm and Fleener . . . More writers pitch in, too, and the diversity of images and narrative voices add texture and resonance to the proceedings . . . The absorbing graphic presentation may elicit interest from unexpected quarters."—Richard Pachter, The Miami Herald

"Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William Burroughs need no introduction, but here they are introducing The Beats: A Graphic History—in the section written by Harvey Pekar and illustrated by Ed Piskor. It's warts and all: the alcohol-fueled writings, the drug-fueled globe-trotting, not to mention the rampant sexuality and jaw-dropping misogyny . . . But there's humor here too by Joyce Brabner and Summer McClinton on a topic ripe for latter-day ridicule: 'Beatnik Chicks.' Good thing too that Pekar et al. salute some lesser lights in this primer on the birth of the cool: City Lights bookstore founder and poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, in addition to poets Philip Whalen, Kenneth Patchen, and D.A. Levy, plus former hobo Slim Brundage."—Leonard Gill, The Memphis Flyer

"Graphic novels don’t just have to be about dystopian alternative universes, no matter if Watchmen might indicate otherwise. Just peruse the eye-catching The Beats: A Graphic History (in stores as of Tuesday), from Harvey Pekar, Ed Piskor and Paul Buhle, which takes an illustrated look back at a very real part of American pop-culture history, when beat culture of the ’40s and ’50s—sandwiched between the improvisational nature of jazz and the recklessness of rock ’n’ roll—began to speak to a part of a generation at odds with mainstream society. One word sums it up: Cool."—Cary Darling, Star-Telegram

"Do we really need another bio on the lives of Kerouac, Ginsberg, et. al.? Yes, especially should it be one like The Beats. I expected The Beats to be dry, regurgitated history presented in graphic novel form simply because graphic novels are so 2009. So much for first impressions. American Splendor's Pekar leads a troop of writers who bring these influential—and often seriously flawed—writers to life . . . The Beats is strong, dramatic storytelling that is executed and illustrated by major leaguers."—Randy Myers, Contra Costa Times

"Written by Harvey Pekar and four other authors, with art by eleven cartoonists and illustrators, The Beats covers all the major writers of the generation—Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Philip Whalen, Robert Duncan, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Charles Olson, Diane DiPrima, and many more. 'No one claims this treatment to be definitive,' Buhle and Pekar write in their introduction to the book. 'But it is new and it is vital.' And, perhaps more important, it's fun."—Poets & Writers

"If you're a fan of Harvey Pekar, author of the successful graphic novel-turned-film American Splendor, then you can imagine how his voice sounds on a weekday morning, discussing topics including homophobia, Yiddish, and moves about Joseph McCarthy. In his latest project, The Beats: A Graphic History, Pekar conjures an imagined, often hilarious dialogue between Beat Generation writers."—Holly Siegel, Nylon 

"It always seemed to me that most of the work by Jack Kerouac and the rest of the Beat Generation was more about visceral experience than any kind of linear plotline. It's weird to think that Harvey Pekar sat down with a kajillion other dudes to put together a sprawling retelling of a movement that primarily consisted of sometimes admirable man-boys acting out weird fantasies and then publishing book about them, but he did. As an introduction to the beats, the book works."—Sam Hockley-Smith, Fader

"The Beats: A Graphic History is everything a radical history should be: critical, admiring, quirky and apologetic. The Beats is largely written by Harvey Pekar and illustrated by Ed Piskor, with a concluding section of more critical, less biographical pieces written and illustrated by a variety of critics and artists, including Nancy J Peters, Tulu Kupferberg, Summer McClinton, Anne Timmons and others. The opening section consists of Pekar's biographies of the canonical Beats, Kerouac, Ginsberg, Burroughs, and then onto the less-celebrated members of the scene, including Rexroth, Ferlinghetti, LeRoi Jones, and so forth. These pieces are loving but harsh, sparing their subjects little sympathy for their misdeeds (which are many, ranging from murder and betrayal to vicious misogyny and naive, fleeting affairs with reactionary politics and mysticism). Pekar shows us that a mature person can admire the worthy deeds and art of historical heroes without glossing over their bad acts—or throwing away their art with their sins. The Beats of Pekar's work are often geniuses, are capable of great acts of charity and selflessness, and overcome great personal challenges with a great deal of style and perseverance. Pekar shows us where their character flaws took root, explains them—and never excuses them. At the end of this section, I felt like I understood and appreciated the poetry and prose and music of these people better than I had beforehand. But the last third of the book really puts it all into pers...