Interzone

by William S. Burroughs

Book Overview

In 1954 William Burroughs settled in Tangiers, finding a sanctuary of sorts in its shadowy streets, blind alleys, and lowlife decadence. It was this city that served as a catalyst for Burroughs as a writer, the backdrop for one of the most radical transformations of style in literary history.

Burroughs's life during this period is limned in a startling collection of short stories, autobiographical sketches, letters, and diary entries, all of which...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140094512
• ISBN13: 9780140094510
• Release Date: February 1990
• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Length: 194 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.1" x 7.7"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

This is an important book after you read his experimental work.

I know Burroughs's work. This book has one piece called 'Word' that you should read AFTER reading his experimental work. I think his true value as an American writer lay in his experimental work, and his strong influence on the Beats. Interzone lets you see the growth of his experimental approach. Burroughs was a fearless writer who inspired many. His subject matter and experimental technique were both significant literary developments for American Literature. This book gives insight into his earliest attempts at developing something truly novel. The piece called 'Word' is culmination of his efforts where his unique style and approach first become apparent. Read it after the Naked Lunch and/or The Nova Express. Once you understand that his work is not actually just total incoherent Dada, you may like to read Interzone. Besides, even if his experimental works are totally incomprehensible due to their fragmentary, and syntactically bizarre style, his experimental works seem to teach one about how we create meaning. And they still contain all the significant and serious subjects expected of literature. In addition, thanks to the internet and non-hierarchical hyper linked documents, his technique is not so incoherent after all. One last point about his value as a writer: he studied his own mind and behavior with some detachment. True some of his actions are moral issues for some, but he has value in that he did not try to cover up who he was and what he did, nor did he try to white wash, and avoid topics he thought others may not want to read about. This is an important quality for a great writer to exercise. SMTECH

essential reading to really fully grasp burroughs genius

Burroughs has incredible insight and an unmatched knack for spotting a con. This book contains an invaluable collection of short stories and journal rants that really showcase an emerging writer exploding with ideas in the transient surroundings of Tangier, which he describes as "the listening post of the world": "Here East meets West in a final debacle of misunderstanding, each seeking the Answer, the Secret, from the other and not finding it, because neither has the Answer to give". You hear firsthand his ideas and theories on writing so this is probably the best introduction to William Burroughs, as you prepare with the artist himself, stranded in interzone, for the arrival of a much more fragmented and explosive Naked Lunch.

The Alien Corn

A novel of dangerous ideas, Interzone is literature at its subversive best. Like with all Burroughs' fictions, you'll never think about things the same after this.

"Interzone" exemplifies Burroughs' insight, style, & genius

Before digesting the bulk of Burroughs' voluminous literary output, any reader so interested in Burroughs' work should read "Interzone." This text chronicles Burroughs' progressive literary development and encompasses virtually all of Burroughs' many and complex themes, character types, locales, etc. Much like his electric and mystifying prose, "Interzone" is a collection of abstract and provocative "primers" that will leave the reader hungry for Burroughs' more involved works. A great "jumping off" point