Naked Keith, or Keith's Lunch

I like the first title better, but the latter is more PG, even though this book is more like XXX. 

Naked Lunch, by William Seward Burroughs.  A hallmark of the Beat Generation, and also a strong weapon in the government's War on Drugs.  Cause who would want to try those hard drugs after reading something like this?  Naked Lunch is not a story in the traditional sense.  It is more of a series of vignettes centering around a character named Lee (Burroughs), and others, in a trip from New York to Mexico to Tangiers to a city called Interzone that exists solely in his drug-addled, demented state.  I had to get most of this summation from the back of the book and other reviews, because it is really difficult to follow in the book itself.

Most of Naked Lunch are rambling scenes of drug use, gay sex, and capital punishment.  How many scenes of young boys being hanged while shitting and coming can you fit in one book?  Before I read Naked Lunch, I would have guessed none, but now that illusion (and my innocence) has forever been shattered.

Now, this is not a disparaging review however.  Literature isn't always pretty and easy to read.  Though the passages could be disturbing, they can be very poetic at times, not to mention imaginative.  It's honest, and brutal, and a revealing look into the mind of an addict and a genius.

I read the 'restored text' version of the book, and I loved reading the backstory behind the making of the book.  The title was credited to Jack Kerouac (one of my favorite authors), and Burroughs was in love with Allen Ginsberg, writer of the famous 'Howl' poem.  A few months ago I went to an exhibit at the National Gallery of Ginsberg's photos from the 1950's and throughout his life.  Burroughs was in a few of the photos, as well as Kerouac.  Together, Ginsberg helped Burroughs write, organize and publish Naked Lunch, even though he spurned the love of Burroughs.  It is fascinating to think that three friends were the leaders of an entire movement in literature.

Naked Lunch was a very interesting read.  I won't say I regret reading it, although I hope I don't have too many nightmares.

Three and a half out of five stars.