Desolation Peak

by Jack Kerouac, Charles Shuttleworth (Editor)

"Something will happen to me on Desolation Peak…I can feel it." 

In the summer of 1956, Jack Kerouac hitchhiked from Mill Valley, CA, to the North Cascades to spend two months serving as a fire lookout for the US Forest Service. Taking only the Diamond Sutra for reading material, he intended to spend his time in deep contemplation and to achieve enlightenment. He wrote in his journal that he planned "to concentrate on emptiness of self, other selves, living beings, and universal self." In letters to friends he proclaimed, "Something will happen to me on Desolation Peak…I can feel it." 
Kerouac's experience on Desolation Peak forms the climax of his novel The Dharma Bums and has also been depicted in part 1 of Desolation Angels and a chapter in his nonfiction book Lonesome Traveler . None of these versions offers a full, true picture, however; and for that reason, Desolation Peak is essential reading. What separates Kerouac from all other writers is the depth that he went in exploring his own consciousness, and what will prove his most enduring legacy is the record he left of that exploration, revealing the psyche of a sensitive, tortured artist grappling with himself in the mid-20th Century.  The highlight of Desolation Peak is the journal he kept, starkly revealing the depth of his poverty, the extremity of his mood swings, and the ongoing arguments with himself over the future direction of his life, his writing, and faith. Along with the journal, he worked on a series of projects, including " Ozone Park ," another installment of the Duluoz Legend beginning in 1943, after his discharge from the Navy; " The Martin Family ," an intended sequel to The Town and the City , and " Desolation Adventure, " a series of sketches that became part 1 of Desolation Angels ,. In writing it, Kerouac was re-committing himself to his more experimental, then-unpublishable style, declaring in the journal that "the form of the future is no-form." Also included in Collected Writings is " The Diamondcutter of Perfect Knowing ," Kerouac's "transliteration" of the Diamond Sutra, his " Desolation Blues " and " Desolation Pops " poems, and assorted prose sketches and dreams. 

Genres: Poetry, Nonfiction

312 pages, Hardcover

Published November 8, 2022

About the author

Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac, known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation.

Of French-Canadian ancestry, Kerouac was raised in a French-speaking home in Lowell, Massachusetts. He "learned English at age six and spoke with a marked accent into his late teens." During World War II, he served in the United States Merchant Marine; he completed his first novel at the time, which was published more than 40 years after his death. His first published book was The Town and the City (1950), and he achieved widespread fame and notoriety with his second, On the Road, in 1957. It made him a beat icon, and he went on to publish 12 more novels and numerous poetry volumes.
Kerouac is recognized for his style of stream of consciousness spontaneous prose. Thematically, his work covers topics such as his Catholic spirituality, jazz, travel, promiscuity, life in New York City, Buddhism, drugs, and poverty. He became an underground celebrity and, with other Beats, a progenitor of the hippie movement, although he remained antagonistic toward some of its politically radical elements. He has a lasting legacy, greatly influencing many of the cultural icons of the 1960s, including Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Jerry Garcia and The Doors.
In 1969, at the age of 47, Kerouac died from an abdominal hemorrhage caused by a lifetime of heavy drinking. Since then, his literary prestige has grown, and several previously unseen works have been published.

Reviews

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited to get early access to this book as I love Jack Kerouac’s writing. The narrator was great, but I didn’t feel this book was the best to put in audiobook format. As the journals are being read there’s disruption for journal page numbers which was distracting. I really enjoyed hearing his personal thoughts and stories while on Desolation Peak, as disjointed and disconnected to reality as they often were. I would definitely recommend to any other fellow Kerouac fans, as it gives insight to his thought processes.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

You really have to be a Jack Kerouac fan to like this one. But then, I am one, so here goes. For 63 days in 1956, Kerouac served as a fire-spotting lookout on Desolation Peak in Washington's Northern Cascades. He undertook this experiment in rugged solitude with a single book, The Diamond Sutra -- a Buddhist religious work. This was in the period just before On the Road was published, which made his name a household word throughout America and relieved him of his penury.

What Desolation Peak: Collected Writings consists of are Kerouac's journal up on the mountain, the beginnings of two novels which he abandoned (Ozone Park and The Martin Family), a handful of poems, and his own translation of The Diamond Sutra. The journal and Ozone Park were both pretty interesting, as was some of the poetry.

When you like an author enough to even give his unpublished fragments a try, I guess it must be love.

[Oliver · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite insightful and a pulling read

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack Kerouac hoped that he would be transformed by his time working as a fire lookout on Desolation Peak in Washington State’s Cascade Range for two months in the summer of 1956. By this time, he had already established a serious writing habit though he had yet to transform it into a career or anything like the success he felt he deserved and that awaited him. His literary scene had made its jump, or expansion from New York to the west coast, primarily San Francisco.

This era of his life has, up until now been primarily documented in two of his major novels, Dharma Bums and Desolation Angels with supporting material scattered throughout collections like Book of Dreams, and Book of Blues. This new work, with insightful commentary and clean-up from Charles Shuttlesworth is an expansive, enlightening view into his daily experience on the mountain and into his process asa writer. Shuttlesworth’s contribution is significant in that he has adjusted Jack’s journals and collected writings in a way that Kerouac himself likely would have had he lived to see them published. He offers enough context that a new reader will be able to understand this critical time in the author’s life and development and a Kerouac fan will still find help and insight. He deftly avoids overtaking the original author and this feels in every way like a new Kerouac publication.

Kerouac’s personal and aesthetic struggles are on full display in this book. One can see his frustration with his craft as he vacillates between his two preferred writing styles of Deliberate and Spontaneous Prose. He debates the merits of his recent commitment to Buddhist practice, extolling it and then throwing it away all in the course of a written page. As many readers will likely know, his time on Desolation was to be the longest period in his life away from alcohol. He was eager for this at the outset, clearly having some growing awareness of his dependence on it. Yet the appeal of sobriety quickly wears thin and his journals reflect his withdrawal. More interestingly, they also reflect in new bare contrast the psychological symptoms of underlying mental illness that Kerouac was likely medicating with drugs and booze. In all his published works and subsequent biographies, this anguish has never been so apparent as it is here. The reader will find the usual Kerouac magic, albeit in raw form and find sympathy for his tortured psyche high on his lonely mountain lookout.

The source materials for this work reside in the Berg collection and are not available to common readers. Thankfully this first edition contains a final section of high resolution color photos of the journals and writings that were done on the face and backs of Forest Service forms Kerouac found in his cabin.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely for Kerouac fans only, I wouldn’t recommend this to someone unfamiliar with Desolation Angels at the very least. But for those of us who are big time fans of his work, this was a beautiful look at the man behind the Legend.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Taking a Whack at Kerouac

It was interesting but, admittedly, fairly rambly at times.

Some good writings, but also some fairly mundane ones as well.

My first exposure to Kerouac, and was happy to see what he was like, as so many authors I enjoy have referenced his writings.

Not entirely sure his writing is my type, but I am glad to have attempted and read this one!

3.0/5

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super interesting look at Kerouac's personal experience living in a fire watchtower in isolation, and how that affected his thinking and writing. I enjoyed hearing some of the writings and the journal entries, but I think maybe this one would be better read than listened to (the piecemeal nature of things can get a bit strange when trying to listen).

[Janalyn, the blind reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

In many of Jack Kerouac‘s books desolation has been a reoccurring theme and then desolation peaks we find out why. He was a voracious writer and his most productive time was the two months he spent being a fire watcher for the desolation peaks mountain range in Washington state. He placed a few of his books on desolation peak some darker than others but this is the only one that talks about him personally on top of the mountain alone, sober and bored. In this book we also get some short stories and like all the Jack Kerouac stories the pros are biting, deliberate and sometimes insightful but always entertaining. I have always loved Jack Kerouac‘s books and although this was written about him I still found it entertaining and totally loved reading his short stories and Pages out of his personal journals I hadn’t heard before another reading materials that I must’ve missed by the author. I highly recommend this book if you love the bohemian Jack Kerouac this is definitely a book you want to read I listen to the audio version and I absolutely love the narrator I wish I could remember his name but OMG he has such a great voice! I received this book from net galley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

[[ashes] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kerouac’s journal and additional writing of his time at Desolation Peak in the 50s. Obviously, its main feature is the journal he kept, but next to that and the clarifying notes of [] are insightful. Following the main course are the things he wrote and worked on during his time upon the mountain, like a sequel to The Town and the City and a Buddhist text.

It comes as no surprise the main course was my favourite, having read and enjoyed Desolation Angels, Dharma Bums and Lonesome Traveler, but the other texts give an insight into Kerouac's state of skill and style. I liked to read most of it, but it does feel to be catered to a niche audience. Coming across ideas and lines from novels he later published is fun, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone apart from the Kerouac fan.

[Rosalie (industrialreader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed the voice of the narrator and the content was interesting, however, this would have been much better if I read a physical copy. The inclusion of page numbers was jarring and took me out of the story a lot. Any speed above 2x speed lost words and did not work to understand the material. The chapters and sections started in the middle of the tracks. The inclusion of notes and comments by the narrator/author was also disruptive in listening to Kerouacs material.
I recommend this for a Kerouac fan and I do recommend reading a physical copy.

[Tommy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack was a mess, capable of brilliant spontaneous prose and disposable ramblings. This provided some good insights to Jack's state of mind during his Dharma Bums/Desolation Angels era.

Jack seemed to vacillate between inspired and hopeless quite often, and the editor of this work points to the possibility that Jack was bipolar. That makes sense. It's a disjointed but engaging read for Kerouac fans. For those not so passionate about him, I'd recommend just picking up "Dharma Bums" or "Desolation Angels" instead.

[Gregory Fischer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this. The more I read, the more Kerouac I want to read. Such a unique voice and style and way of sharing about oneself. This journal could be him at his best. Curious if he had any sort of drugs with him while on Desolation Peak. I’d like to think that he did not. So, most of the writing would have a sober quality about it, which would apparently be rare for him. But that I would like to understand very much. Either way, I admire what he shares about Buddhism here. I like the two novellas. I like the insecure realness of the journal… I like I like

[Andy Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a nice supplement, not a substitute, for reading Dharma Bums and Desolation Angels. Reading the volume of work written by Kerouac while working as a lookout on Desolation Peak in 1956 is interesting for a Kerouac devotee but the unpublished works are unpublished for a reason I suppose. And in fairness to Kerouac, he did not intend for his journal entries or his draft stories to be published
My favorite part of reading this was Charles Shuttleworth's narrative giving the background of Kerouac's time as a Lookout

[The_Philosoph · Rating 5 out of 5]

An essential collection to anyone who wants to understand Kerouac's psychology. The notes and the figures at the back are especially elucidating. Although, I do not recommend to those who are just starting with Kerouac or those who want to pick something up for pleasure.

[Bird Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audio.
Maybe not the best Kerouac to start with. This is just the notes of a madman and it had me questioning if I’m bipolar too ‘cause some of it reminded me of myself.

Selected writings from his time as a fire lookout in Washington.

[Bernie]

What a great time I had with this book! Thank you very much to all involved, Kerouac Estate,Mr. Shuttleworth, etc.
Please release more!

[Unclemark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book with a lot of insights on Kerouac as a person,as a Buddhist and as a writer.Best to read his novels though,especially Dharma Bums and Desolation Angels.Loved this!!

[Kent Winward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting in terms of seeing Kerouac's creative process, plus there is his distinctive voice.

[Jeff Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rare view into the output of a writer for 2 months by himself in a cabin onto of Desolation Peak.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent deep dive

[Guy Pauley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably only worth reading if you are a big fan of Kerouac. Even then it's a bit tedious at times, especially the journal section. The unfinished fictional works are pretty interesting.

[Robbie Rhodes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is really only a treat for Kerouac diehards. A lot of meandering notes from the mind of a madman, but I did enjoy the portion about his interactions with the mice.

[David Highton · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixed collection of writing in 1956 while Kerouac was a fire lookout in the US Forest Service

[Iain · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Something will happen to me on Desolation Peak…I can feel it."

Jack Kerouac set off in the summer of 1956 for two months of solitude in the North Cascades to find himself and write about it. He was a fire lookout for the U.S. Forest Service and besides looking for fires there was little else to do. He wrote in his journal that he planned "to concentrate on emptiness of self, other selves, living beings, and universal self." Kerouac's experience on Desolation Peak forms the climax of his novel The Dharma Bums and has also been depicted in part 1 of Desolation Angels and a chapter in his nonfiction book Lonesome Traveler. This collection of writing puts a lot of work into context and sometimes it is just out of context but through it all you get a sense of the writer he was to become. What separates Kerouac from all other writers is the depth that he went in exploring his own consciousness, and what will prove his most enduring legacy is the record he left of that exploration, revealing the psyche of a sensitive, tortured artist grappling with himself in the mid-20th Century. If you are a fan of Jack Kerouac this book is an interesting bonus to how the man lived and wrote.

[Hjortronhyllan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I min jakt på detaljerna ifrån livet hos olika eldtorns vaktare halkade jag tillbaka till vår allas Jack Kerouac. Ett vant namn från “The road”, här i Desolation Peak är dock tonen något annorlunda. Lättast är att beskriva det som en resa genom avgrunden av två sinnen.

Det är i grunden en dagbok, skriven av en man som försöker hålla ihop sig själv medan han vacklar mellan upplysning, tvivel och ren förtvivlan. Kerouac pendlar mellan sina två poetiska temperament, det kontrollerade och det spontana. Ena sidan är en stilla beslutsamhet om att bli en bättre version av sig själv, nästa sida är ett tvärt kast där han avfärdar allt han höll för heligt tjugofyra timmar tidigare. Det är som att få vara den där flugan på väggen när han brottas med buddhismen, med konsten, med beroendet och med den där självföraktande rösten som han försöker kväva med meditation men som bara skriker högre.

Efter en bredare sökning är detta en av de första böcker där alkohol lyser med sin frånvaro. “Den längsta i hans vuxna liv”, blir en sorts oavsiktlig lupp mot pappret. Utan rusets filter blottas mycket av det som annars kanske gömmer sig mellan raderna i hans fiktion. Ångesten, rastlösheten, den cirklande svindeln av att vara ensam med sitt eget huvud i tornet. Plötsligt är det inte längre den romantiserade beatnomaden vi följer utan en man som inte riktigt vet hur man lever utan att dämpa sina andar först. Det är oslipat, ibland svårfångat och det är enligt mig ett material för den som vill förstå författaren Kerouac än den som vill svepas av honom.

Desolation Peak är en bok för de redan invigda. För den som läst On the Road, The Dharma Bums och allt gott från hans penna. Det är en enkelbiljett in i skallen på Kerouac där vi intimt får se hur tankarna faktiskt rörde sig där inne. Den är långt ifrån en perfekt bok, men den försöker inte vara det heller. Den är en anteckning av sökandet.

Ett värdefullt tillägg för oss som redan är fast i hans värld.