Rating: 
Summary: A Journey Into The Unknown -- What Could Be Better?
Review: This is the one book that stretches the definitions of just about every classification ever made about it. Although it contains a whole lot of fiction (people turn into centipedes, scorpions, oozing masses of ectoplasm, etc.), it contains just as much stuff from William S. Burroughs' real life. However, he manages to blend all of it together in such a way that you can't tell just what's going on until about 50 pages into the book.
It's certainly a daunting task trying to separate the wheat from the chaff the first time that you read it, but about halfway through, you start to understand Burroughs' bizarre sense of black humor, and you can begin to laugh at things like Steely Dan (a strap-on used by a characters girl-friend to... uh... bugger him) and A.J.'s various exploits (bringing a baboon into a bar, but trying to pass it off as a poodle).However, this book is not for everyone. If you are uncomfortable with things like frank depictions of the effects diseases (real and imagined), gay sex, and drug use by just about everyone from politicians to doctors (during surgery), then this book will send you screaming from the library. On the other hand, if those things don't bother you, this could easily become your favorite book of all time. Along with NAKED LUNCH, I'd like to recommend THE LOSERS' CLUB by Richard Perez. Thanks to the previous reviewer who recommended it.
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Summary: A True Masterpiece Of 20th Century Literature
Review: It's been almost three years now since Uncle Bill scored the Immaculate Fix, but his spirit still lives on. This novel, Burroughs' greatest work was written in the late 1950's, a time when American pop culture reached untold heights of banality. Enter Naked Lunch - a double-barreled assault on truth, justice, and the American Way. No institution is safe, nothing is sacred, and the taboo is made holy, as capitalists, racists, fascists, homophobes, doctors, cops, Christians, and hypocrites of all sorts get their just desserts. Burroughs, a fortunate son born into wealth and power, dissects and destroys proper society in his prose, exploding mind bombs of words throughout. Veering somewhere between a bad acid trip and exact Swiftian satire, Naked Lunch remains the most original work of fiction ever written. A must-read for all serious students of literature, this is one of those books that you just can't "like" - you either love it, or you hate it. I absolutely loved it! This book also begs for re-reads as new insights are revealed with each reading. And please, PLEASE be sure to listen to Burroughs read the abridged version on tape! After completing this novel, Burroughs went on to invent the cyberpunk sub-genre of science fiction with his Nova Trilogy of novels. As Norman Mailer once opined, "Burroughs is the only American novelist living today who may concievably be possessed by genius." Squares need not apply. A word to the Wise Guy.
Rating: 
Summary: Disgusting... But you have to read it.
Review: This book made me sick. It took me ages to read it, because I had to keep putting it down. But that's the beauty of it: the ramblings of a junky have never seemed more real nor more potent. Read this book!
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Summary: Inspiring
Review: Oh, I forget how i heard of this, i think it was the simpsons episode where milhouse bart and nelson ride across country in a stolen car--they saw a movie, naked lunch, and said, "i can think of two things wrong with that title... my sister didnt want me to read it. neither did my mom. and i'm 22! so, i bought it, read a couple pages, and gave up on it. returned it to the bookstore. a year later i somehow got interested in it again, thought id give it a second chance. i read about half way, and couldnt remember what i read. then a month later, i said, 'andy, youre going to read it all the way!' and i did. it takes a couple stabs at it 'cause its so fast paced and jumps all over the place but is so fresh and exciting to read. im not gay or anything but its obvious he loves men, and writes about it savagely, but there is something cool about it. i liked it the third time. i can only imagine what was going through librarians heads in 1959. 'Oh my god! this is insanity! burn it, burn it all!" read it, if you dare. its a book one must read i think, so, go buy it now! ps) just read the info on the book to see how the style and other things about the book itself...
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Summary: what nightmares are made of
Review: i see how some people fail to understand why Naked Lunch is indeed one of the greatest books of this century - the first contact with it leaves you shocked, disoriented. There is no real storyline one could easily explain, nor are the characters defined - Burroughs instead creates atmosphere, litle bits of subreality, and ends up with a world that is in a way more real than it oughta be - he is not afraid of loading it with an oddball mix of tiny stories, poems, events, descriptions and dialogues that dont have much to do with the 'main' story - as long as it's one huge nightmare, he keeps pushing it - and you simply have to enjoy it, even if you cant really tell why. Take a stab at this great book! Special thanks, too, to the guy who recommended that book by richard perez -- The Losers Club, maybe the best recommendation i've had in months.
Rating:
Summary: Knowing the score
Review: You don't need me to tell you this is a great book. Writing has never been this good. But are you ready for it? The images are out there. The style is out there. If you haven't been out there with Burroughs, you may want to start with a similar message in a more traditional form, namely his trilogy that begins with "Cities of the Red Night". But the power is here in this book. The power of the truths about control, about desperate needs, about everything that is lurking beneath even well-structure, settled lives. If you're studious, then after the thrill of Naked Lunch, if there is an "after Naked Lunch", you can grow your understanding of your social conditioning with Peter Handke's play "Kaspar" and with B.F.Skinner's study "Verbal Behavior" (read Skinner's "Science and Human Behavior" before "Verbal Behavior"). These are all you need to be able to stand on your own two feet. But start with Naked Lunch to get the jolt you'll need to start understanding how the control systems have you pinned down. Heroin addiction and gay sex are only small adornments in "Naked Lunch", the escapes could have been instead workaholism and fundamentalism, or reading books and writing Amazon reviews. But you probably wouldn't be drawn to a book about Amazon book reviewers. Still, Naked Lunch isn't describing anything far away. It's not "out there" after all but right in our guts. Enjoy.
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Summary: The emperor has no clothes
Review: Look, either you hate this book or you love it. Burroughs didn't set out to write a classic or make art, he had no choice whatsoevever, he just had to write this down. OK there is no story but so what? A writer/artist should try to express himself not try to write the next classic. This book isn't a scam or a sick joke, it's a man's heart bleeding vitriol. There is no purer book than this, it conceals nothing, it pretents nothing, it's a naked lunch, everybody gets to see what's on the end of their fork. While other writers make use of great stories and plots to cover up the fact that they've got nothing original to say, Bill just spits it at you. The emperor has no clothes? That's because he shed them, they were too constricting.
Rating:
Summary: yep, that about sums it up.
Review: Whatever your favorite taboo, you are sure to find it here. Burroughs' work is amazing, from its utter disregard of the rules (pick a rule, any rule - lit laws, societal structure, the sciences - he broke them all) to its poetic quality and clarity. Yes, clarity. Doesn't matter who you are (reader, writer, artist, freaknik, beatnik, poet, politician, anthropologist, sociologist, literary deconstructionist etc...) you ought to grab yourself a copy of this one. And when you're done with it, force it on someone else. And don't skip Ginsberg's testimonial at the beginning. It's there for a reason.
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Summary: Literature that Assaults All the Senses
Review: Not only can you see the words, but you can smell paragraphs, feel the sentences and taste the chapters. William S. Burroughs has managed to cheat the structure of the English language by flat-out denying the existence of orthodoxy, tradition, convention, rules, principles and standards to deliver a fresh 1950s account of what it is to be a free person, although albeit with the paradox of equally being hooked on every conceivable vice. Burroughs treats character development, plot and structure as mere formalities that have no place on the page. To him the essence of writing is to convey an idea of an experience by any means necessary. This is inclusive of coining new words, new grammar and new syntax as long it gets the message across. In many ways Burroughs achieves the expression of his deranged take on the human condition, and the inhuman one, by simply never coming to terms with life as anything more than psychotic mayhem with the assumption that being "correct" is with population numbers that concur with one another on the trivial points of livelihood. To him it is all pandemonium whatever way you try to cook it and since disorder and chaos are the meal of day why not just dine on it like a King's banquet. The premise here is non-existent. It simply delves into some sort of a junkie come spy come homosexual cover operative who travels to a place called the Interzone to write daily reports of his experiences there. The narrative is fresh, bold, thoroughly unique and actually interesting. It is inspiring but any attempt at trying to do a genre like it can only be seen as plagiarism. Not only has Burroughs cornered his market here, but he owns it through and through. There is nothing else like Naked Lunch and there probably never will be. This book was so shocking when first published that it was tried under obscenity laws. By today's standards the work is quite heartening but is still thoroughly deranged material. It is evil because it is destabilizing on the reader who is brought to a resounding crunch as their mind leaves all rational thought behind. At that moment anything can happen. Let's just hope that the reader can tell the difference between fiction and fantasy before it is too late. One might just get up in the morning and accidentally collapse the economy by huddling in the corner of the room with a grimace on their face and soiled undergarments. The men in white coats will come to get you when the neighbours complain of the smell...
Rating:
Summary: Take the Adventure!
Review: No, this book isn't for everyone. Yet I would recommend it to everyone simply on the grounds that it is such a piece of groundbreaking literature. It is a book like no other. If you think you've read it all before, then read this. Granted, I'm a huge William Burroughs fan. He has inspired a lot of my own writings and showed me that sometimes no structure is the best structure. Let the reader make what they will of your writings. That giving the reader their own opportunity to explore your creations rather than map it all out for them is an experience unto itself. And whether or not they love it in the end is not the big prize. Having given them the experience is. Naked Lunch took me quite a while to read. The first Burroughs book I read was Junky, another tale of drug addiction filled with Burroughs' own brand of slick humor. However it was completely straightforward. Naked Lunch is, by all means, as twisted and turned as literature can get. Once you get past page 3 of the proceedings, just enjoy the ride. You may feel the need to go back and reread what you just read, but don't. There is no point in doing that, because the "meaning" of this novel comes and goes. It loses itself within stories within stories within stories. To sit here and try to explain what Naked Lunch is all about is futile. It's like trying to find a word that rhymes with orange. It just can't be done. Hence, each reader will have his or her own experience with this book. There are plenty of horrific and grotesque images in this work, yet they are vivid and wonderful in their own ways. Burroughs' mastery of language and especially the beat style and rhythm is awe inspiring. The words flow by breathlessly, no matter what they are conveying. Reading this book is like no other experience I've ever had. It is scary, funny, sad, hip, and cool. I'd also like to thank the other Amazon reviewer for recommending THE LOSERS' CLUB by Richard Perez -- as a "failing and flailing writer" myself, this book is a great comfort to me.
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