Junky: Popular Penguins

Name: Junky: Popular Penguins
Brand: Penguin Random House NZ
SKU: 9780141045405
Price: 15.99 NZD
Availability: InStock

By William S. Burroughs

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3.85

( 70,358 ratings, 2,973 reviews)

Summary

Junky: Popular Penguins by William S. Burroughs offers a raw, first-person narrative that delves into the gritty underworld of drug addiction in post-war America. The book serves as a semi-autobiographical account, providing a candid exploration of the life of a heroin addict, capturing the societal and psychological impacts. Through a minimalist and unflinching prose style, it reveals the challenges and desperation of addiction without romanticisation.
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Format: Paperback / softback

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Junky: Popular Penguins

$15⁹⁹

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

If you are drawn to gritty, first-hand accounts of addiction and the exploration of human frailty through raw and unflinching prose, this book may appeal to you. The author's candid depiction of his experiences provides a vivid and thought-provoking narrative, making it a compelling read for those interested in counterculture literature.

Description

Junk is not, like alcohol or weed, a means to increased enjoyment in life. Junk is not a kick. It is a way of life.

Junky, Burroughs's cult classic, is a raw, semi-autobiographical account of drug addiction, which outraged America and influenced generations of writers to come. He relates with unflinching realism the highs and lows of dependency—euphoria, hallucinations, ghostly nocturnal wanderings, and strange sexual encounters.

Junky is a dark, powerful, and mesmerizing account of one man's challenge to turn self-destruction into art.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Junky: Popular Penguins by William S. Burroughs has been praised for Burroughs' hard, inventive, and poetic voice, which is distinctly American. He is celebrated for creating dark fairy tales that resonate with adult fears and desires, with popularity across generations. His writing is noted for its precision and fearless exploration of themes, earning him admiration as a visionary with significant influence on postwar literature.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780141045405

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 29 June 2009

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Penguin Books Ltd

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 12.0mm

Width: 112.0mm

Height: 180.0mm

Weight: 112g

Pages: 192

Collections

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About the Author

William S. Burroughs was born in 1914. His first published novel was the largely autobiographical Junky, which remains a classic depiction of the constant cycle of drug dependency, cures and relapses he was victim to for most of his life. In 1951, in a drunken William Tell stunt, he accidentally shot and killed his common-law wife. He is most famous for his use of the 'cut-up' technique of writing and the novel Naked Lunch. His other major works included Queer, Exterminator! The 'Nova Trilogy' (The Soft Machine, Nova Express and The Ticket That Exploded) and the 'Red Night Trilogy' (Cities of the Red Night, The Place of Dead Roads and The Western Lands). He died in 1997.

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