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Summary: i was very tired
Review: sincerity to the Buddha mind and the Buddha spirit is the quintessential Dharma unraveling. and read my book. good stuff about beans and mountains.
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Summary: Life is great!
Review: Having heard me praise this book countless times, my wife finally read it for herself. Her response? "You know, I was expecting some stereotype of 'cool' Beatniks, trying to be so hip and detached. But that's just some popular media image. The people in this book are exuberant, thoughtful, even spiritual!" That sums it up as well as anything. Forget the glib idea of alterna-cultural one-upmanship that passes for a Beat attitude these days - "The Dharma Bums" is about naïve exuberance, anything-but-ironic soul-searching, an eager exploration of life's sorrows and joys, and the sheer, exhilarating, wondrous zest of being alive and aware in an endlessly fresh world. If reading this clear mountain stream of a book doesn't make you want to change your life and your way of looking at life, then you're just hopelessly blind to something precious! Life is so much more than the neatly packaged, pre-imagined commercial that society would love to sell you, and "The Dharma Bums" will gladly show you one possible way of finding your true path.
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Summary: What an Opening!
Review: The opening pages of the Dharma Bums contain the most inventive, bodacious, interesting prose in Amercian letters. Who else could even dream of weaving St. Therese, compassionate Bhuddist wisdom, democratic, open road visions, the Mind of God, in a beautiful, fluent rush of prose? This is Kerouac, the pure writer!
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Summary: Read Me Read Me Read Me
Review: Pretend that you've ever heard of Jack Kerouac. Forget you've ever heard the words "Beat Generation." Set down your ideas of what life should be like. Read this book. It will make you want to sell all your worldly possessions in a mammoth yard sale and take off to find It.
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Summary: The greatest book from the greatest American writer
Review: I cannot write enough words to describe how wonderful this book is. I could write a book about its greatness, its mind-numbing beauty, its special place in the pantheon of great human achievements. Jack Kerouac was a shooting star, a dharma bum in the truest sense of the word. This man has a style and fluidity to his writing that is otherworldly, and yet so magically human. He synthesizes poetry and prose in a way that not many have ever approached. His writing is lyrics to his life, my life, your life. He can express the human condition better than anyone I have ever encountered. In the Dharma Bums, he tells about his adventures with Japhy Ryder (Gary Snyder), a man who lived his life the way that Kerouac wrote. Spontaneous, beautiful and pure. This is a book with power, that has changed many peoples lives, including mine, and has the power to influence so many more. Buy five copies of this book and loan them out to your friends and strangers. Kerouac's dream of a rucksack revolution is one of the most beautiful ideas that I have ever known, and this book is the starting point for that inevitable revolution. So get this book and get started. Hit the road and things will never be the same. peace.
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Summary: On My Top 5 List
Review: I read this book every couple of years. It gives me a fresh view of things around me after I read it. It paints a vivid picture of the days he was writing about, and reading it is like being there for a moment. Kerouac shows a lot about himself in the book also. Each time I read it, it is as vivid and as new.This is a good book to read if you are looking for what Kerouac's books are like. It's a quick read and I recommend it.
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Summary: Simple, Beautiful Novel about the Rucksack Generation
Review: Dharma Bums is a beautiful story, though there's no real plot to speak of -- no damsel in distress, no hero facing adversity, no complicated twists . . . it's just about life. The reader follows the typical Kerouac rucksacker as he floats along in his mid-twenties -- hiking the mountains of the west coast, thumbing his way across the country and swapping spiritual observations with Zen enthusiast and companion Japhy Ryder. This book is a treasure, reminding the reader of the subtle beauties in nature, conversation, travel and friendship. It's a perfect fit for any fan of life.
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Summary: Don't miss this!
Review: Kerouac really out did himself on this one! I finished "On the Road" wondering why anyone would write another book after this. I picked up "Dharma Bums" and realized that this guy could tell a story about anything, and make it the most interesting thing on the block! His 'everyday-speak' use of written language makes you feel the beads of sweat dripping from your own pores as he hikes; makes you feel peaceful and tranquil as he meditates... That, Ladies and Gentlemen, is TALENT!
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Summary: VIVA RUCKSACK REVOLUCION!
Review: Cracker Jack's got quite a nack at righting these shindigs about the bums in rucksacks. Dharma Bums gives you a glimpse into the life of the Beats with a focus on their cut of Zen. This really is a great story and it will inspire you. On a side note I recommend trying to find the original edition; the old pages really smell a lot better.
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Summary: Excellent follow-up to "On the Road"
Review: "The Dharma Bums" is an excellent follow-up to Jack Kerouac's famous second novel, "On the Road," a must-read for all Kerouac fans. Pay special attention to the infamous mountain climb by Kerouac, Gary Snyder, and John Montgomery--lots of great imagery, language, and central themes of life there. This book changed my life forever. It also contains the famous poetry reading (where Allen Ginsberg read "Howl") at 6 Gallery in San Francisco (Oct. 7, 1955).
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