John Leland

Legions of youthful Americans have taken "On the Road" as a manifesto for rebellion and an inspiration to hit the road. But there is much more to the book than that. In "Why Kerouac Matters", John Leland embarks on a wry, insightful and playful discussion of the novel, arguing that it still matters because it lays out an alternative road map to growing up. Along the way, Leland overturns many misconceptions about "On the Road" as he examines the lessons that Kerouac's alter ego, Sal Paradise, absorbs and dispenses on his novelistic journey to manhood, and how those lessons - about work and money, love and sex, art and holiness - still reverberate today.

Hip: The History is the story of how American pop culture has evolved throughout the twentieth century to its current position as world cultural touchstone. How did hip become such an obsession? From sex and music to fashion and commerce, John Leland tracks the arc of ideas as they move from subterranean Bohemia to Madison Avenue and back again. Hip: The History examines how hip has helped shape -- and continues to influence -- America's view of itself, and provides an incisive account of hip's quest for authenticity. This P. S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.

Retracing for modern-day visitors the Paris of "The Sun Also Rises" and "A Moveable Feast," of James Joyce, Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Ezra Pound, thsi guidebook uncovers the cafes, hotels, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, gardens, and other landmarks immortalized by Hemingway in his fiction and nonfiction.