On the Road
The original manuscript of Jack Kerouac's definitive Beat Novel On the Road has been published in a new edition. This edition is based on the original manuscript which was typed by Kerouac on a 120 foot scroll in a 20 day marathon in April, 1951. The scroll was auctioned to James Isray (owner of the Inianopolis Colts) for 2.43 million in 2001.
Kerouac's novel of freedom and the promise of the open road is definitlely worth a read because of its widespread influence on so many Beat writers. One of these, Thomas Pynchon, acknowleged this influence in his preface to his book of short stories entitled Slow Learner.