I've read this book five or six times since I discovered Kerouac in college. On The Road struck me like a bolt of lightning. Kerouac's beat jazz rhythmic prose was a revelation. I consumed as much of Kerouac's works as I could. Honestly, The Dharma Bums is my favorite work of his but On The Road wasn't too far behind.
It had been probably a decade since I last read On The Road. I picked it up by happenstance. I had loaned it to my son last year and found it on his night stand after he packed up for college. I decided to give it another go. I was interested if it would still hold up now that I'm in my fifties. Or would it be another one of those cases where something from my past just seemed trivial and dumb.
Glad to say it does indeed hold up. I greatly enjoyed getting back into it. Kerouac's prose is still fantastic. And after so many reads you pick up more and more little details passed over on earlier reads. And I understood more.
That being said, there are some problematic moments in the book to say the least. Dean in Sal's own words is indeed a rat. Their treatment of women is terrible. Their adventure in Mexico in the little town of Gregoria is almost unspeakable.
So yeah, those observations do taint the book a bit in modern eyes. It's still an enjoyable read. But if I had to choose, go with The Dharma Bums.
