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Minor Characters
Minor A Memoir Of A Young Women In The 1950s In The B by Johnson, Joyce
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1983
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About the author
Joyce Johnson
102 books103 followersBorn Joyce Glassman to a Jewish family in Queens, New York, Joyce was raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, just around the corner from the apartment of William S. Burroughs and Joan Vollmer Burroughs. Allen Ginsberg and Kerouac were frequent visitors to Burroughs' apartment.
At the age of 13, Joyce rebelled against her controlling parents and began hanging out in Washington Square. She matriculated at Barnard College at 16, failing her graduation by one class. It was at Barnard that she became friends with Elise Cowen (briefly Allen Ginsberg's lover) who introduced her to the Beat circle. Ginsberg arranged for Glassman and Kerouac to meet on a blind date.
Joyce was married briefly to abstract painter James Johnson, who was killed in a motorcycle accident. From her second marriage to painter Peter Pinchbeck, which ended in divorce, came her son, Daniel Pinchbeck, also an author and co-founder of Open City literary magazine.
Since 1983 she has taught writing, primarily at Columbia University's MFA program, but also at the Breadloaf Writers Conference, the University of Vermont and New York University. In 1992 she received an NEA grant.
At the age of 13, Joyce rebelled against her controlling parents and began hanging out in Washington Square. She matriculated at Barnard College at 16, failing her graduation by one class. It was at Barnard that she became friends with Elise Cowen (briefly Allen Ginsberg's lover) who introduced her to the Beat circle. Ginsberg arranged for Glassman and Kerouac to meet on a blind date.
Joyce was married briefly to abstract painter James Johnson, who was killed in a motorcycle accident. From her second marriage to painter Peter Pinchbeck, which ended in divorce, came her son, Daniel Pinchbeck, also an author and co-founder of Open City literary magazine.
Since 1983 she has taught writing, primarily at Columbia University's MFA program, but also at the Breadloaf Writers Conference, the University of Vermont and New York University. In 1992 she received an NEA grant.
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December 6, 2025
Because They're Young
After reading a review of Joyce Johnson's biography of Jack Kerouac, "The Voice Is All: The Lonely Victory of Jack Kerouac", I read the book, together with "Minor Characters", Johnson's 1983 memoir of her relationship with Kerouac years earlier. Upon its publication, "Minor Characters" won the National Book Critics Circle Award. Johnson (b. 1935) has written three novels and other works of nonfiction in addition to the Kerouac biography and "Minor Characters."
Born Joyce Glassman, Johnson had an on-again, off-again love affair with Kerouac between 1957 -- 1959. When the relationship began, Glassman 21, had attended Barnard for four years, beginning when she was 16 but failed to graduate. She was working as a secretary for a publisher and writing her first novel, for which she had received a $500 advance. Kerouac, 34, had published one novel, "The Town and the City" and had written several other books, including "On the Road" which had not found publishers. He had already knocked around a great deal, with two failed marriages, stints in the Merchant Marine, and travels across the country that "On the Road" would make famous. He had the problems with alcohol and drugs that would get worse with time.
When she wrote "Minor Characters", Johnson looked back upon her younger life with a sense of wisdom, detachment, and loss, as she endeavors to understand her life and the "Beat" era. The tone is wistful, sad, thoughtful, sometimes ironic, but unapologetic. Concluding her memoir,Johnson writes, "I'm a forty-seven-year-old woman with a permanent sense of impermanence. If time were like a passage of music, you could keep going back to it till you got it right."
The book begins in 1945 when the Glassman family had moved to New York City. Joyce Glassman's parents were Jewish immigrants of modest means. Her parents had high ambitions for their daughter, with her mother urging Joyce to pursue a career as a composer, to study, and to defer involvement with young men. As an adolescent, Glassman developed a double life, sneaking away from homes during the evening to attend radical and cultural gatherings in Greenwich Village. Looking back on these years, Johnson describes herself as in search of "Real Life", which she proceeds to define with candor:
"Real Life was sexual. Or rather it often seemed to take the form of sex. This was the area of ultimate adventure, where you would dare or not dare. It was much less a question of desire. sex was like a forbidden castle whose name could not even be spoken around the house, so feared was its power. Only with the utmost vigilance could you avoid being sucked into its magnetic field. The alternative was to break into the castle and take its power for yourself."
The book alternates passages describing young Joyce Glassman's own life, with the parallel lives of the individuals who became formative of the Beats, including Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, and more. Glassman's story and Kerouac's delve together when Allen Ginsberg arranges a blind date, months before Kerouac achieves the fame which hastens his demise with the publication of "On the Road".
Johnson's book offers a beautifully described sense of place of New York City Bohemia in the years following WW II through about 1960. She describes the East Side and Greenwich Village, the bars, cafeterias, streets, and tenements where young people breaking away tried to live. The portrayals of Kerouac and his books, and of people such as Ginsberg, John Clellon Holmes, Neal Cassady, LeRoi Jones are highly perceptive. Johnson emphasizes the women who became part of the Beat movement and their frequently unhappy lives. They were often shabbily treated. The title "Minor Characters" is sometimes thought to refer to the Beat women. I think it refers to the Beats as a whole. Centered around Kerouac, they were a group who seemed marginal and "minor" at the time but proved to have cultural influence.
For the most part, Johnson resists reading cultural developments from the late 1960's and 1970's into her memoir. She seems less than fully comfortable with these developments as she remembers her life and her largely unrequited love for Jack Kerouac.
For the shock value it had at the time, there is a near universal character in the story of young people and Bohemia. Johnson comes to understand her parents and their hopes for her. The Beat movement was a product of youthful skepticism and rejection of received standards of conformity. I am not sure if a Bohemia could thrive today because of the lack of standards on which young creative individuals could push back.
"Minor Characters" is a sadly lyrical book that helped me understand Joyce Glassman, Kerouac, the Beats, and the culture in which they were formed.
Robin Friedman
After reading a review of Joyce Johnson's biography of Jack Kerouac, "The Voice Is All: The Lonely Victory of Jack Kerouac", I read the book, together with "Minor Characters", Johnson's 1983 memoir of her relationship with Kerouac years earlier. Upon its publication, "Minor Characters" won the National Book Critics Circle Award. Johnson (b. 1935) has written three novels and other works of nonfiction in addition to the Kerouac biography and "Minor Characters."
Born Joyce Glassman, Johnson had an on-again, off-again love affair with Kerouac between 1957 -- 1959. When the relationship began, Glassman 21, had attended Barnard for four years, beginning when she was 16 but failed to graduate. She was working as a secretary for a publisher and writing her first novel, for which she had received a $500 advance. Kerouac, 34, had published one novel, "The Town and the City" and had written several other books, including "On the Road" which had not found publishers. He had already knocked around a great deal, with two failed marriages, stints in the Merchant Marine, and travels across the country that "On the Road" would make famous. He had the problems with alcohol and drugs that would get worse with time.
When she wrote "Minor Characters", Johnson looked back upon her younger life with a sense of wisdom, detachment, and loss, as she endeavors to understand her life and the "Beat" era. The tone is wistful, sad, thoughtful, sometimes ironic, but unapologetic. Concluding her memoir,Johnson writes, "I'm a forty-seven-year-old woman with a permanent sense of impermanence. If time were like a passage of music, you could keep going back to it till you got it right."
The book begins in 1945 when the Glassman family had moved to New York City. Joyce Glassman's parents were Jewish immigrants of modest means. Her parents had high ambitions for their daughter, with her mother urging Joyce to pursue a career as a composer, to study, and to defer involvement with young men. As an adolescent, Glassman developed a double life, sneaking away from homes during the evening to attend radical and cultural gatherings in Greenwich Village. Looking back on these years, Johnson describes herself as in search of "Real Life", which she proceeds to define with candor:
"Real Life was sexual. Or rather it often seemed to take the form of sex. This was the area of ultimate adventure, where you would dare or not dare. It was much less a question of desire. sex was like a forbidden castle whose name could not even be spoken around the house, so feared was its power. Only with the utmost vigilance could you avoid being sucked into its magnetic field. The alternative was to break into the castle and take its power for yourself."
The book alternates passages describing young Joyce Glassman's own life, with the parallel lives of the individuals who became formative of the Beats, including Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, and more. Glassman's story and Kerouac's delve together when Allen Ginsberg arranges a blind date, months before Kerouac achieves the fame which hastens his demise with the publication of "On the Road".
Johnson's book offers a beautifully described sense of place of New York City Bohemia in the years following WW II through about 1960. She describes the East Side and Greenwich Village, the bars, cafeterias, streets, and tenements where young people breaking away tried to live. The portrayals of Kerouac and his books, and of people such as Ginsberg, John Clellon Holmes, Neal Cassady, LeRoi Jones are highly perceptive. Johnson emphasizes the women who became part of the Beat movement and their frequently unhappy lives. They were often shabbily treated. The title "Minor Characters" is sometimes thought to refer to the Beat women. I think it refers to the Beats as a whole. Centered around Kerouac, they were a group who seemed marginal and "minor" at the time but proved to have cultural influence.
For the most part, Johnson resists reading cultural developments from the late 1960's and 1970's into her memoir. She seems less than fully comfortable with these developments as she remembers her life and her largely unrequited love for Jack Kerouac.
For the shock value it had at the time, there is a near universal character in the story of young people and Bohemia. Johnson comes to understand her parents and their hopes for her. The Beat movement was a product of youthful skepticism and rejection of received standards of conformity. I am not sure if a Bohemia could thrive today because of the lack of standards on which young creative individuals could push back.
"Minor Characters" is a sadly lyrical book that helped me understand Joyce Glassman, Kerouac, the Beats, and the culture in which they were formed.
Robin Friedman
April 21, 2013
If I weren't taking a class about the Beat Generation right now, I probably would never have even been told about this book, much less read it. And that would really have been a tragedy, because very shortly after starting this book I found myself hooked. I was supposed to speed read it in just a week, but I found myself captivated. I couldn't rush through it, only gleaning the information I would need for whatever upcoming paper or discussion I would be taking part of. Instead I read this book slowly, enjoying it only at moments when I was most relaxed. I allowed myself to fall deeply into the world that Joyce Johnson recreates in her memoir. And I found myself attaching to the characters almost against my will.
I'll be honest: there is no love lost between me and the Beats. As much as I appreciate their writing for the literary value, I've never found too much to interest me in the people themselves. After reading entirely too many biographies on various big wigs in the movement, I've gotten somewhat tired of the same stories told by people who are academically removed from the people they are writing about. It is boring, and no one has made any of the writers and their circle come alive for me.
That was Joyce Johnson's biggest success here. She brought these characters alive for me and made me feel for them and sympathize with them. I am not one hundred percent sure what the reason is, but I suspect her own love for these people played a large part in my own warming to them. I could see them not just as these detached literary figures, sanctified by generations of hipster kids, but as real people, with real flaws. And instead of those flaws making my distaste for the Beats feel vindicated, they made invited me into the lives of these men and especially the women. And I didn't want to leave.
Even though I already knew how the story ended for all these characters, both major and minor, I didn't want the end of the book to come. Even as I rushed headlong toward the end of the narrative, I didn't want to reach that last page. I was hoping that Johnson would finish on the happy notes, or at least the bittersweet ones. But she doesn't hold back. Just as she let us into the lives of these rising stars of literature, she also let us into their downfall--either into anonymity or early death. Or both.
In the end I was glad to have read this book. I would definitely recommend it to anyone even remotely interested in the Beats and their hangers-on. But I especially recommend it if you, like me, find yourself unimpressed with the character of the Beats. While this book will not necessarily change your mind, it will give you a deeper understanding of why they were the way they were.
I'll be honest: there is no love lost between me and the Beats. As much as I appreciate their writing for the literary value, I've never found too much to interest me in the people themselves. After reading entirely too many biographies on various big wigs in the movement, I've gotten somewhat tired of the same stories told by people who are academically removed from the people they are writing about. It is boring, and no one has made any of the writers and their circle come alive for me.
That was Joyce Johnson's biggest success here. She brought these characters alive for me and made me feel for them and sympathize with them. I am not one hundred percent sure what the reason is, but I suspect her own love for these people played a large part in my own warming to them. I could see them not just as these detached literary figures, sanctified by generations of hipster kids, but as real people, with real flaws. And instead of those flaws making my distaste for the Beats feel vindicated, they made invited me into the lives of these men and especially the women. And I didn't want to leave.
Even though I already knew how the story ended for all these characters, both major and minor, I didn't want the end of the book to come. Even as I rushed headlong toward the end of the narrative, I didn't want to reach that last page. I was hoping that Johnson would finish on the happy notes, or at least the bittersweet ones. But she doesn't hold back. Just as she let us into the lives of these rising stars of literature, she also let us into their downfall--either into anonymity or early death. Or both.
In the end I was glad to have read this book. I would definitely recommend it to anyone even remotely interested in the Beats and their hangers-on. But I especially recommend it if you, like me, find yourself unimpressed with the character of the Beats. While this book will not necessarily change your mind, it will give you a deeper understanding of why they were the way they were.
March 18, 2008
Although there are moments of stunning beauty, this book is more often... dull. The nature of life may be fragmentary, but Johnson's swerving changes in direction make for a book whose narrative is confusing and even annoying.
This book is three things: it's a memoir of a woman's early life; it's a reflection on women's place in society in the 1950s; and it's a book about the beat generation.
I suspect most people who pick it up are interested in the third element. However, as a Beat memoir, I found it disappointing. Johnson's interaction with the major Beat writers is, all told, a bit limited. She gives interesting portraits of those that she knew and attempts to demystify Jack Kerouac, but there are no particularly stunning revelations.
As a book about women in the 1950s, it's a more chunky read. Johnson is clear and insightful on the subject of gender and the most memorable passages are those where Joyce navigates what it means to be a woman in society. Her accounts of illegal abortions are particularly vivid. Possibly the best part of the novel is Joyce's relationship with her friend, Elise, who suffered a much more tragic fate.
However, Minor Characters is, predominantly, a memoir about an unremarkable young woman. Bear in mind, Johnson doesn't meet Kerouac until halfway through the book. I found much of the content about Joyce's childhood/adolescence incredibly tedious. Also, it's only a part memoir. We don't get to hear what happened to Joyce after her 30th birthday. We also don't get to hear what happened to any of the other "characters" later in life. (Johnson assumes a lot of Beat knowledge from her reader. I'm pretty well-read in that area and even I found myself on wikipedia, looking up information about the players in her story.)
This book is three things: it's a memoir of a woman's early life; it's a reflection on women's place in society in the 1950s; and it's a book about the beat generation.
I suspect most people who pick it up are interested in the third element. However, as a Beat memoir, I found it disappointing. Johnson's interaction with the major Beat writers is, all told, a bit limited. She gives interesting portraits of those that she knew and attempts to demystify Jack Kerouac, but there are no particularly stunning revelations.
As a book about women in the 1950s, it's a more chunky read. Johnson is clear and insightful on the subject of gender and the most memorable passages are those where Joyce navigates what it means to be a woman in society. Her accounts of illegal abortions are particularly vivid. Possibly the best part of the novel is Joyce's relationship with her friend, Elise, who suffered a much more tragic fate.
However, Minor Characters is, predominantly, a memoir about an unremarkable young woman. Bear in mind, Johnson doesn't meet Kerouac until halfway through the book. I found much of the content about Joyce's childhood/adolescence incredibly tedious. Also, it's only a part memoir. We don't get to hear what happened to Joyce after her 30th birthday. We also don't get to hear what happened to any of the other "characters" later in life. (Johnson assumes a lot of Beat knowledge from her reader. I'm pretty well-read in that area and even I found myself on wikipedia, looking up information about the players in her story.)
December 22, 2010
The book was really enjoyable for me mainly because I got a personal account of what it was like to live in NYC in the 1950s. Her main stomping grounds were three of my former own: 1. The Upper West side (Morningside Heights) 2. The Village (west). 3. The East Side (East Village).
Johnson states her disappointment with the fact that women were left out of the creative parts of the movement, yet she spent a lot of time waiting for Kerouac, failing to create much of anything herself, until her romantic relationship with Kerouac ended. This passage really made see she wanted to be a part of the community / scene, but like most women of her time, didn't want to stand out in that community and be proud to be an individual: "If I weren't in love with Jack and maybe going away, I might be tempted to become Fee's "old lady," straighten him out a little, clean up the studio, contribute to the rent, have a baby or two, become one of those wary, quiet, self-sacrificing, widely respected women brought by their men to the Cedar on occasional Saturday nights in their limp thrift shop made interesting with beads" (170).
It makes me sad to see Kerouac in this light, a selfish manipulator, but that's what he was. Maybe Jack is right, there are no more American heroes...
Johnson states her disappointment with the fact that women were left out of the creative parts of the movement, yet she spent a lot of time waiting for Kerouac, failing to create much of anything herself, until her romantic relationship with Kerouac ended. This passage really made see she wanted to be a part of the community / scene, but like most women of her time, didn't want to stand out in that community and be proud to be an individual: "If I weren't in love with Jack and maybe going away, I might be tempted to become Fee's "old lady," straighten him out a little, clean up the studio, contribute to the rent, have a baby or two, become one of those wary, quiet, self-sacrificing, widely respected women brought by their men to the Cedar on occasional Saturday nights in their limp thrift shop made interesting with beads" (170).
It makes me sad to see Kerouac in this light, a selfish manipulator, but that's what he was. Maybe Jack is right, there are no more American heroes...
November 23, 2019
Another reread of New York City. This is such a lovely memoir, deserving of its near-classic status. Johnson was 47 years old when she first wrote about her love affair with New York City and with Jack Kerouac. Sometimes I think it's her writing about the city I keep returning to, sometimes I think it's her remembering the people, now famous or even legendary, she knew when she was a very young woman and included in the coterie around Kerouac. Johnson genuinely loves New York City but loves the young bohemians of her past, too, and recognizes her debt to them. Her fond regard for people like Allen Ginsberg and Hettie Jones and Elise Cowen allows us to see them as she did, not as heroic Beat figures, because they weren't heroic, but because they needed and deserved her love. It's lovely, but it's sad, too. She nostalgically recalls her passage from teenage wanderings in Washington Square searching for a bohemian lifestyle to early jobs in publishing and connections with the Beats and love with Kerouac. She burns through some years with him as he burns himself up in the flame of his early fame, unable, finally, to follow her when she walks away. The regret of her memoir includes her gratitude she was allowed to be there. "If time were like a passage of music, you could keep going back to it till you got it right," she writes. I keep going back--I love this book.
May 15, 2011
Minor characters is a very telling memoir for those who are interested in the Beat generation, but I have a problem with it: it was the first Beat novel I'd ever seen written by a woman, and it's about how she followed Kerouac around and pined after him. She seemed to have many interesting friends, her own place, and a career that she was trying to start, which all would have made for an interesting memoir, yet she only mentioned them when she was talking about the things that she sadly filled her time with while Kerouac was off having his own adventures. It was great to have a new look at Kerouac, but I would have liked to see more about Johnson's own life and interests rather than just her sad love affair. In my opinion, the women of the Beat generation could have been much more than "minor characters" if they had only portrayed themselves as such.
June 30, 2020
From a very young age I’ve been subconsciously taught that in order for a girl to live a life full of adventure and comprehend all walks of life you must fell in love with an extraordinary man (or boy, whatever is age appropriate) who is going to make your life so awesome, everyone would envy you. That life comes in return for your services, which are never domestic: you get a steady income, you support the family, you pursue a carrier path. But first comes the great love for the man who inspires you. That’s the only ‘natural’ way to get into a grown-up life.
Sounds appealing in theory, but how on earth this is ‘natural’? In that ultimate real life people are people, regardless of age, race, gender, sexuality, looks; they make mistakes and aren’t some kind of superheroes who rescue you at first notice. But also they do something, you don’t even notice right away: people inspire you to become the better version of yourself, for your own good only, not for someone else’s benefit. Everyone is an inspiration in their own way, and regarding mutual love as the ultimate outcome of being inspired is very wrong. Maturing together from a very young age is a miracle that should be celebrated as such and never pursued deliberately. I did, and i am very glad to understand I was wrong.
I recognised myself in Joyce Johnson’s ‘Minor Characters’, me and my teenage aquanauts, who thought about making music themselves. We, the fangirls, were inspired and at same time listened to ‘Female vocal doesn’t belong in rock-music, it’s not the same’, ‘I dislike the female lead’ and such. Despite the most popular band being 1) very nice people, 2) active feminists, 3) LGBTQ+ supporters, 4) celebrated wlw love, the other folk wasn’t very open-minded and having a musician love-interest felt like a ticket to the unknown world of ‘real life’. Wish anybody would tell us that we already have everything at our disposal and a love-interest wouldn’t make it easier (unless they have money to give away, which they never had). I’m so glad memoires like Minor Characters were written, so people would understand their own worth and won’t feel obliged to tie themselves to anybody despite their differences. It’s great to stay in someone else’s shadow until you mature though. But never at the expanse for your own identity.
Sounds appealing in theory, but how on earth this is ‘natural’? In that ultimate real life people are people, regardless of age, race, gender, sexuality, looks; they make mistakes and aren’t some kind of superheroes who rescue you at first notice. But also they do something, you don’t even notice right away: people inspire you to become the better version of yourself, for your own good only, not for someone else’s benefit. Everyone is an inspiration in their own way, and regarding mutual love as the ultimate outcome of being inspired is very wrong. Maturing together from a very young age is a miracle that should be celebrated as such and never pursued deliberately. I did, and i am very glad to understand I was wrong.
I recognised myself in Joyce Johnson’s ‘Minor Characters’, me and my teenage aquanauts, who thought about making music themselves. We, the fangirls, were inspired and at same time listened to ‘Female vocal doesn’t belong in rock-music, it’s not the same’, ‘I dislike the female lead’ and such. Despite the most popular band being 1) very nice people, 2) active feminists, 3) LGBTQ+ supporters, 4) celebrated wlw love, the other folk wasn’t very open-minded and having a musician love-interest felt like a ticket to the unknown world of ‘real life’. Wish anybody would tell us that we already have everything at our disposal and a love-interest wouldn’t make it easier (unless they have money to give away, which they never had). I’m so glad memoires like Minor Characters were written, so people would understand their own worth and won’t feel obliged to tie themselves to anybody despite their differences. It’s great to stay in someone else’s shadow until you mature though. But never at the expanse for your own identity.
February 13, 2008
The best memoirs make you feel that you have been hanging around the same apartments, sharing subway benches, drinking bottomless cups of coffee at the same diner with someone. Reading "Minor Characters" made me feel this way.
Steeping myself in the world of the beats, a solid 15 years after I first read Kerouac and Ginsburg and after having now visited City Lights in SF and after about 4 and a half years of haunting Columbia University, I felt that becoming acquainted with Joyce wasn't unlike facing a younger version of one's self. Perhaps the best chroniclers are the ones who stayed sober, cleaned up the apartment, and took out the trash. To say Joyce was a muse is to really sell short her own talent and accomplishments. It also sells short the beauty of a woman who so honestly displays her continued desire to be free despite all oppositions and her misgivings. She wasn't impetuous; she wanted life on her terms alone.
Who said, "I was so old then/I'm so much younger now?" Something like that... I can't quite remember, but I feel that way reading this book. What a remarkable woman and a truly incredible memoir.
Steeping myself in the world of the beats, a solid 15 years after I first read Kerouac and Ginsburg and after having now visited City Lights in SF and after about 4 and a half years of haunting Columbia University, I felt that becoming acquainted with Joyce wasn't unlike facing a younger version of one's self. Perhaps the best chroniclers are the ones who stayed sober, cleaned up the apartment, and took out the trash. To say Joyce was a muse is to really sell short her own talent and accomplishments. It also sells short the beauty of a woman who so honestly displays her continued desire to be free despite all oppositions and her misgivings. She wasn't impetuous; she wanted life on her terms alone.
Who said, "I was so old then/I'm so much younger now?" Something like that... I can't quite remember, but I feel that way reading this book. What a remarkable woman and a truly incredible memoir.
June 19, 2023
D’aquest llibre he après que sense les dones que els feien el dinar, els rentaven els calçotets i treballaven per pagar-los el lloguer no hi hagués hagut generació beat
November 12, 2018
3,5.
El final se me ha hecho un poco lento, pero me ha gustado mucho cómo escribe Joyce Johnson y el retrato detallado que hace de la generación beat, a la que prácticamente no conocía.
El final se me ha hecho un poco lento, pero me ha gustado mucho cómo escribe Joyce Johnson y el retrato detallado que hace de la generación beat, a la que prácticamente no conocía.
September 25, 2007
a superb and tender account of a life lived in the center of a rather marvelous hurricane of talented souls, including her own. without being sappy, overly nostalgic, or sentimental, johnson recounts her strongest and most poignant memories of her relationships with jack, leroi and hettie jones, allen ginsberg, peter orlovsky, and many others. she was with kerouac the night before, and for many days and nights after-'on the road' hit america's consciousness after its gleamingly positive review in the new york times. she was with him the moment his anonymity was neatly murdered. it's an account of anyone who has loved those who needed love, wanted it, craved it, but were still able to reject it in its purest and most selfless form.
it is also a fascinating account of the divisions within america at the time, within new york, within the world. when 'mixed' marriages still shocked people, girls were not supposed to wear black stockings, or stay out past midnight, or live on the lower east side where the 'artists' got up to various troubles, and what it was like to be a woman in that world, with creative needs, desires, and fulfillments all your own.
i finished it inside of two days. highly recommend it. i quote a poignant reflection musing on the relationship between artists and their audience:
"artists are nourished by each other more than by fame or by the public, i've always thought. to give one's work to the world is an experience of peculiar emptiness. th ework goes away from teh artist into a void, like a message stuck into a bottle and flung into the sea...the true artist knows the pitfalls of vanity. dangerous to let go of one's anxiety. but did you UNDERSTAND? must always be teh question. to like and admire is not enough: DID YOU UNDERSTAND?..'
it is also a fascinating account of the divisions within america at the time, within new york, within the world. when 'mixed' marriages still shocked people, girls were not supposed to wear black stockings, or stay out past midnight, or live on the lower east side where the 'artists' got up to various troubles, and what it was like to be a woman in that world, with creative needs, desires, and fulfillments all your own.
i finished it inside of two days. highly recommend it. i quote a poignant reflection musing on the relationship between artists and their audience:
"artists are nourished by each other more than by fame or by the public, i've always thought. to give one's work to the world is an experience of peculiar emptiness. th ework goes away from teh artist into a void, like a message stuck into a bottle and flung into the sea...the true artist knows the pitfalls of vanity. dangerous to let go of one's anxiety. but did you UNDERSTAND? must always be teh question. to like and admire is not enough: DID YOU UNDERSTAND?..'
November 7, 2019
my psych gave this to me to read when i was 22 and broken-hearted over some abusive, alcoholic musician. 5.5 years later and i finally picked it up and was ready to read past page 32.
this book is everything. why am i crying.
this book is everything. why am i crying.
September 4, 2022
Stunning. Sentimental in the best way. What it’s like to be on the sidelines of history as it happens- and to know it. What it’s like to be the only one left to tell the story.
I thought this would have an element of ‘setting the record straight’, a bitterness, but its a beautiful and pure tribute of love and lack thereof.
I couldn’t get through a chapter of this without wanting to highlight passages and tell everyone and maybe cry so now I tell goodreads
I thought this would have an element of ‘setting the record straight’, a bitterness, but its a beautiful and pure tribute of love and lack thereof.
I couldn’t get through a chapter of this without wanting to highlight passages and tell everyone and maybe cry so now I tell goodreads
August 30, 2024
Ok guys. I’m walking home from carbon copy after reading this book exclusively at carbon copy crying listening to Elliott smith.
Might have to read Jack Kerouac. I have no words other than love. Camilla has been telling me to read this for the past 2 years and it simply did not disappoint.
I want to start keeping a journal. Maybe morning pages. I love a memoir. I love life.
Might have to read Jack Kerouac. I have no words other than love. Camilla has been telling me to read this for the past 2 years and it simply did not disappoint.
I want to start keeping a journal. Maybe morning pages. I love a memoir. I love life.
December 31, 2022
Best stuff:
I feel much the same in later years whenever I part from a man I love. The anxiety is not so much over leaving as over an impending fading of identity.
I'd learned myself by the age of sixteen that just as girls guarded their virginity, boys guarded something less tangible which they called Themselves. They seemed to believe they had a mission in life, from which they could easily be deflected by being exposed to too much emotion.
I started walking forward. I was going to thank him for inviting me and use all my strength to walk to the exit and go home by myself. Maybe he'd be too drunk to ask me what I thought and I wouldn't have to lie to him. I loved him, but it didn't mean a thing to him, really.
I feel much the same in later years whenever I part from a man I love. The anxiety is not so much over leaving as over an impending fading of identity.
I'd learned myself by the age of sixteen that just as girls guarded their virginity, boys guarded something less tangible which they called Themselves. They seemed to believe they had a mission in life, from which they could easily be deflected by being exposed to too much emotion.
I started walking forward. I was going to thank him for inviting me and use all my strength to walk to the exit and go home by myself. Maybe he'd be too drunk to ask me what I thought and I wouldn't have to lie to him. I loved him, but it didn't mean a thing to him, really.
July 26, 2019
A very nicely written memoir that confirms that Jack Kerouac is a real prick
May 28, 2023
Joyce Johnson's novel "Minor Characters" is an absolute gem that took me on an extraordinary literary journey. From the very first page, I was captivated by Johnson's eloquent prose and her ability to bring the vibrant beatnik era to life.
"Minor Characters" offers a unique perspective on the Beat Generation, showcasing the lesser-known stories of the women who were overshadowed by the famous male figures of the time. Johnson's memoir-like narrative centers around her own experiences, offering an intimate portrayal of her relationships and interactions with key figures such as Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg.
What truly sets this book apart is Johnson's remarkable storytelling prowess. She weaves together her personal journey with the larger cultural and political landscape of the 1950s, providing readers with a rich and multi-dimensional tapestry of the era. The vibrant atmosphere of bohemian New York City comes alive through her vivid descriptions, evoking a sense of nostalgia and an understanding of the social dynamics of the time.
Johnson's portrayal of the "minor characters" is nothing short of extraordinary. She gives a voice to the often overlooked women who played pivotal roles in the Beat Generation movement, shining a light on their talents, struggles, and desires. Her ability to humanize these characters is truly remarkable, making them feel like real people with hopes, dreams, and complexities.
The prose in "Minor Characters" is beautifully crafted, with each sentence flowing effortlessly. Johnson's writing style is both poetic and introspective, allowing the reader to immerse themselves fully in her world. The pacing is perfect, keeping the narrative engaging and the pages turning effortlessly.
As I journeyed alongside Joyce Johnson, I found myself emotionally invested in her story. I felt her longing for independence, her search for identity, and her desire for meaningful connections. Through her words, she conveys the universal themes of love, loss, and self-discovery, making her experiences relatable to readers of all backgrounds.In addition to her own story, she also tells the tragic and deadly story of the young poet Elise Cowen, whom I took particularly to heart. She was a strong-willed woman and the society of her time was not yet ready for what this woman had in store for them and what Elise was willing to give. History had never appreciated strong women and for that reason alone, everyone should take the time to read her story and be touched by it.
Besides Elise Cowen, other remarkable (I say "remarkable" deliberately and anyone who reads the book will understand why) women are mentioned, such as Alene Lee, named by Kerouac as Irene May, or Hettie Jones. They were all wonders of their time and this book is dedicated to them.
"Minor Characters" is not just a book; it's an ode to the indomitable spirit of women who dared to challenge societal norms and carve their own paths. It's a celebration of art, literature, and the power of storytelling. Joyce Johnson's memoir is a literary masterpiece that deserves all the acclaim it has received.
In conclusion, I cannot recommend "Minor Characters" enough. It is a transformative reading experience that will transport you to a bygone era and leave an indelible mark on your heart and mind. Whether you're a fan of Beat literature, memoirs, or simply appreciate exquisite writing, this book is an absolute must-read. Prepare to be enchanted, moved, and forever changed by Joyce Johnson's remarkable tale of minor characters who shine bright in their own right.
"Minor Characters" offers a unique perspective on the Beat Generation, showcasing the lesser-known stories of the women who were overshadowed by the famous male figures of the time. Johnson's memoir-like narrative centers around her own experiences, offering an intimate portrayal of her relationships and interactions with key figures such as Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg.
What truly sets this book apart is Johnson's remarkable storytelling prowess. She weaves together her personal journey with the larger cultural and political landscape of the 1950s, providing readers with a rich and multi-dimensional tapestry of the era. The vibrant atmosphere of bohemian New York City comes alive through her vivid descriptions, evoking a sense of nostalgia and an understanding of the social dynamics of the time.
Johnson's portrayal of the "minor characters" is nothing short of extraordinary. She gives a voice to the often overlooked women who played pivotal roles in the Beat Generation movement, shining a light on their talents, struggles, and desires. Her ability to humanize these characters is truly remarkable, making them feel like real people with hopes, dreams, and complexities.
The prose in "Minor Characters" is beautifully crafted, with each sentence flowing effortlessly. Johnson's writing style is both poetic and introspective, allowing the reader to immerse themselves fully in her world. The pacing is perfect, keeping the narrative engaging and the pages turning effortlessly.
As I journeyed alongside Joyce Johnson, I found myself emotionally invested in her story. I felt her longing for independence, her search for identity, and her desire for meaningful connections. Through her words, she conveys the universal themes of love, loss, and self-discovery, making her experiences relatable to readers of all backgrounds.In addition to her own story, she also tells the tragic and deadly story of the young poet Elise Cowen, whom I took particularly to heart. She was a strong-willed woman and the society of her time was not yet ready for what this woman had in store for them and what Elise was willing to give. History had never appreciated strong women and for that reason alone, everyone should take the time to read her story and be touched by it.
Besides Elise Cowen, other remarkable (I say "remarkable" deliberately and anyone who reads the book will understand why) women are mentioned, such as Alene Lee, named by Kerouac as Irene May, or Hettie Jones. They were all wonders of their time and this book is dedicated to them.
"Minor Characters" is not just a book; it's an ode to the indomitable spirit of women who dared to challenge societal norms and carve their own paths. It's a celebration of art, literature, and the power of storytelling. Joyce Johnson's memoir is a literary masterpiece that deserves all the acclaim it has received.
In conclusion, I cannot recommend "Minor Characters" enough. It is a transformative reading experience that will transport you to a bygone era and leave an indelible mark on your heart and mind. Whether you're a fan of Beat literature, memoirs, or simply appreciate exquisite writing, this book is an absolute must-read. Prepare to be enchanted, moved, and forever changed by Joyce Johnson's remarkable tale of minor characters who shine bright in their own right.
December 29, 2022
I had read author Joyce Johnson’s first novel Come and Join the Dance and thought it was very good, especially coming from a young 26-year-old who had been only a side participant in the beat movement. This is her most popular book, so I had relatively high expectations for it. While I did enjoy the book, overall, it was a bit of a letdown for me.
My problem with the book was I wasn’t sure what the book’s major topic was supposed to be. It was entitled a memoir but was it about Joyce Johnson and her life in the 50s, emphasizing her ‘close encounters’ with the beat movement progenitors, or was it was about those beat movement leaders themselves? In the early parts, Johnson would interrupt the tale of her life in the early 50s with explanations of what Kerouac and crew were up to during their early years in the 1940s. These events did serve as good background info and, I presume, Johnson’s way of keeping the reader hooked through the passages about Johnson’s life prior her to involvement with the Beat leaders. But as these events occurred prior to Johnson meeting them, they didn’t fit as part of her memoir
An LA Times critic wrote in the book’s very first blurb that:
“ Joyce Johnson is doing here, then, is several things. Sure, she’s writing a memoir of the ‘50’s the ‘Beat Generation’ and Kerouac in particular. . . But she’s also writing her own biography and summation of the times. . .”
While the LA critic seemed to be pleased with Johnson’s ability to do “several things’ with this book, I felt that this attempt to do “several things” gave the book an incohesive feel thatoften felt like a random collection of events about the Beat movement, some of which Johnson was present for.
That’s not to say that these events weren’t of interest. Admittedly I found much of the information about Kerouac, Ginsburg, Lucien Carr and LeRoi Jones very interesting. I think the book was at its strongest, though, when Johnson focused on the Beat movements’ “minor characters,” the women participants, such as herself, Elise Cowen and Hettie Jones. The vignette on the birth of Hettie Jones' child at the end of the book helped confirm what had already been observed - just how self-centered, self-important, misogynistic and spoiled the male Beat writers were. The male Beats turned to these “minor characters,” for assistance in having fun and with their writing process but the relationships were one-way rather than mutual. I thought it highly interestingly that it was two of these “minor characters,” the author herself and Hettie Jones, who ended up becoming the most successful Beat writers of the post-1980 literary scene.
As with her novel, Johnson writes clearly and explains herself well. She is an easy writer to read. This is a 3.5-star book that I will round down to 3 stars to reflect the slightly disappointed feeling I had while reading the book.
My problem with the book was I wasn’t sure what the book’s major topic was supposed to be. It was entitled a memoir but was it about Joyce Johnson and her life in the 50s, emphasizing her ‘close encounters’ with the beat movement progenitors, or was it was about those beat movement leaders themselves? In the early parts, Johnson would interrupt the tale of her life in the early 50s with explanations of what Kerouac and crew were up to during their early years in the 1940s. These events did serve as good background info and, I presume, Johnson’s way of keeping the reader hooked through the passages about Johnson’s life prior her to involvement with the Beat leaders. But as these events occurred prior to Johnson meeting them, they didn’t fit as part of her memoir
An LA Times critic wrote in the book’s very first blurb that:
“ Joyce Johnson is doing here, then, is several things. Sure, she’s writing a memoir of the ‘50’s the ‘Beat Generation’ and Kerouac in particular. . . But she’s also writing her own biography and summation of the times. . .”
While the LA critic seemed to be pleased with Johnson’s ability to do “several things’ with this book, I felt that this attempt to do “several things” gave the book an incohesive feel thatoften felt like a random collection of events about the Beat movement, some of which Johnson was present for.
That’s not to say that these events weren’t of interest. Admittedly I found much of the information about Kerouac, Ginsburg, Lucien Carr and LeRoi Jones very interesting. I think the book was at its strongest, though, when Johnson focused on the Beat movements’ “minor characters,” the women participants, such as herself, Elise Cowen and Hettie Jones. The vignette on the birth of Hettie Jones' child at the end of the book helped confirm what had already been observed - just how self-centered, self-important, misogynistic and spoiled the male Beat writers were. The male Beats turned to these “minor characters,” for assistance in having fun and with their writing process but the relationships were one-way rather than mutual. I thought it highly interestingly that it was two of these “minor characters,” the author herself and Hettie Jones, who ended up becoming the most successful Beat writers of the post-1980 literary scene.
As with her novel, Johnson writes clearly and explains herself well. She is an easy writer to read. This is a 3.5-star book that I will round down to 3 stars to reflect the slightly disappointed feeling I had while reading the book.
October 16, 2023
Sublime, Joyce. A veces se nota que sigues arrastrando ideas románticas, míticas del arte y los artistas, ideas de tu tiempo, pero te quiero mucho.
February 28, 2024
I'm grateful to have been able to learn about this book from someone older than myself who was closer to the 'Beatnik' generation. What an astonishingly good book!! Joyce's perspective during the burgeoning beat movement is probably the best account of these times that I'll ever read. She says it all from an insightful female perspective, a 'minor' character, on the periphery of where 'great's' like Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg prevailed.
Johnson starts with a shocking murder on a hillside beside the West Side Highway, bringing her audience's attention right into focus. Growng up nearby on 116th Street put her in close proximity to William Burroughs, Allen Ginsburg and Jack Kerouac who were attending Columbia University. She is known for her tumultuous relationship with Kerouac. What she will be remembered for is her astonishing gift for writing.
Her insight into his character, their relationship and the relationships of other players, gay, bi-straight, who became famous poets, painters and novelists, flows page after page, in crisp, beautifully-written chapters. I was never bored. I never felt like it would be hard to finish.
As a very young girl Joyce would escape to the lower east side to enjoy the people who gathered at cheap cafeterias, bars, galleries, corner stores and hotels in Greenwich Village. She became a weekend beatnik, venturing away from her quiet middle class life in the apartment where she grew up with her parents, a world away, on the upper west side.
She rebelled against their wishes for her to be a concert pianist/composer. She did not want to follow the traditional path to a suitable marriage and a house Scarsdale.
At around the same age as Joyce, I became a weekend hippie, escaping the suburbs for a more exciting time with people older than myself in Manhattan. Joyce didn't think the sixties were as genuine as when she lived, but they were exciting for me. I feel like I'm in Joyce's 'circle of sisters'. Like one of her descendants. I was friends with friends of Allen Ginsburg, Abbie Hoffman, Bob Dylan and other famous types. I was a 'minor character' in New York City in the 1960's. It wasn't all good, but on the whole, it was positive. It was a great place and time to come of age. I have the highest respect for Joyce Johnson. People often tell me to "write a book." I don't think I will because it would never be as good as hers. She's a professor of creative writing at Columbia University.
Johnson starts with a shocking murder on a hillside beside the West Side Highway, bringing her audience's attention right into focus. Growng up nearby on 116th Street put her in close proximity to William Burroughs, Allen Ginsburg and Jack Kerouac who were attending Columbia University. She is known for her tumultuous relationship with Kerouac. What she will be remembered for is her astonishing gift for writing.
Her insight into his character, their relationship and the relationships of other players, gay, bi-straight, who became famous poets, painters and novelists, flows page after page, in crisp, beautifully-written chapters. I was never bored. I never felt like it would be hard to finish.
As a very young girl Joyce would escape to the lower east side to enjoy the people who gathered at cheap cafeterias, bars, galleries, corner stores and hotels in Greenwich Village. She became a weekend beatnik, venturing away from her quiet middle class life in the apartment where she grew up with her parents, a world away, on the upper west side.
She rebelled against their wishes for her to be a concert pianist/composer. She did not want to follow the traditional path to a suitable marriage and a house Scarsdale.
At around the same age as Joyce, I became a weekend hippie, escaping the suburbs for a more exciting time with people older than myself in Manhattan. Joyce didn't think the sixties were as genuine as when she lived, but they were exciting for me. I feel like I'm in Joyce's 'circle of sisters'. Like one of her descendants. I was friends with friends of Allen Ginsburg, Abbie Hoffman, Bob Dylan and other famous types. I was a 'minor character' in New York City in the 1960's. It wasn't all good, but on the whole, it was positive. It was a great place and time to come of age. I have the highest respect for Joyce Johnson. People often tell me to "write a book." I don't think I will because it would never be as good as hers. She's a professor of creative writing at Columbia University.
November 6, 2021
Not only beautifully written but also captivating, shaking and overall a good piece of food for thought. Once again coming across a much-needed statement from brilliant women suffering the weight of their talent from the shadows. Perhaps Joyce being so young yet (forcefully) experienced or perhaps the fact that girls' teenage years share core memories regardless of time and place have made me enjoy and even cherish this piece of literature. 10/10 would recommend
November 30, 2007
Joyce Johnson is my literary hero. Her stories are told so candidly and stoically. I can only hope to one day tell my story as well as she tells hers. As she looks back on her years with Kerouac--and in the beat movement in general--it's amazing to see how crystal-clear she remembers, and how much she's learned from those times. It was so easy for me to forget as a young woman in my 20s going through much of the emotion and pain she endured, the incredibly different world she came of age in. It's astonishing, the courage this woman had to leave her family, to live on her own, and to place herself--even on the fringes of the New York City beat society. Coincidentally, this book and Joyce's other works made me fall in love, even more, with New York City.
July 18, 2014
Certain books upon finishing make you ache for the author. Not only do you feel the pain they felt, but you yearn to be a part of their life, perhaps entering into their private circle of trusted ones. Unfortunately this is not the reality. Many authors are long dead after you read their work,or have retreated to some hermetic and undisclosed location. Alas, I will not seek out the author who is now in her eighties. I will however procure her other works post haste. This was maybe the best and most unique memoir I have ever read. Joyce describes with morbid recollection the Beat Generation and the enigmatic life of the infamous Jack Kerouac. A must read for anyone who loves counterculture movements, the arts, and fine prose.
June 15, 2018
Jack Kerouac is the original f*ck boy. I don’t hold this against him.
Joyce’s perspective of what the Beat generation was for women was terrifying in that I see so many similarities between then and now. My generation on overwhelming restless, drug-oriented, looking for an answer. Women then were mostly observers to the trips (both meanings) and run ins with cops. For women the adventure was dating the man with the adventures. I see that now too. Joyce was Jack’s safe and sound when he was tired of getting high on everything and falling in love with everything in Mexico. I see girls in similar situations and it’s infuriating. Women are still living through Jack’s when with all the work Joyce’s generation and the 70’s did for us, we should be Jack’s but less impetuous and exploitive.
Joyce’s perspective of what the Beat generation was for women was terrifying in that I see so many similarities between then and now. My generation on overwhelming restless, drug-oriented, looking for an answer. Women then were mostly observers to the trips (both meanings) and run ins with cops. For women the adventure was dating the man with the adventures. I see that now too. Joyce was Jack’s safe and sound when he was tired of getting high on everything and falling in love with everything in Mexico. I see girls in similar situations and it’s infuriating. Women are still living through Jack’s when with all the work Joyce’s generation and the 70’s did for us, we should be Jack’s but less impetuous and exploitive.
July 18, 2019
This took me only a little over a day to read. I’m sorry there wasn’t more of Joyce Johnson during this era-her command of prose rivals that of any of her male counterparts. Her insight into the true culture of the era, especially the parts that we’d like to forget today, proves just as valuable as the values depicted by the more famous Beats. This book is bittersweetly nostalgic and humbling; I could relate on a personal level. Very grateful to have been able to read it at a time when I needed it most. Interesting how things happen like that.
November 2, 2012
I would give the first 2/3 of this book four stars and the last third 2.5 stars. That averages to a three-star review I think. I really liked reading about this dorky, literary misfit who was at an awkward age growing up during the coolest time in history surrounded by some of the coolest people who ever lived (I'm told). Then she starts dating Jack Kerouac and her head gets up her ass and she can't get it out.
September 2, 2012
Fairly enjoyable memoir about the Beat Generation from a female perspective by a former lover of Jack Kerouac. It's interesting as it gives a insight into what it was like for the women in this scene and it fills some out the details on the legend of Jack and Allen and William and the rest, but it wasn't especially well written and it hasn't left a very big impression on me. Only worth reading if you are interested in the bohemia of 50's New York and fancy a light book on the subject.
October 2, 2019
An interesting, personal, literary memoir of the author’s 2 year on-again/off-again affair with Jack Kerouac — just as fame burst upon him — and who comes across as odd, lonely, and sadly unfulfilled fellow.
August 6, 2013
Memoir of a fantastic writer in her own right who dated Kerouac as On The Road was published. A great insight into the life of creative women in the late 1950s.
September 17, 2022
“try not to be too sad, Glassmangirl.”
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