Junky: The Definitive Text of "Junk"

"What do you say about a writer who claims that the inspiration for his writing came from murdering his wife? The writer, William S. Burroughs, was a fascinating literary figure. Early on, he befriended the poets and authors Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. They would become three of the central authors who comprised 'The Beat Generation.' The Beat Generation is credited with inspiring the 1960s Counterculture. The movement is best explained as a generation in the United States coming of age, questioning, and rebelling against traditional values. Our book club was introduced to Burroughs by his novel, or novelette, *Junkie*. The book could best be described as Pulp Fiction, or is it 'Pulp Autobiography?' I'm not too sure a category exists, but if it did, this book would fit it perfectly. When our book club gathered to review and discuss the book, I really thought our meeting would be one of the shortest since our club started. The whole book could easily be summed up as 'Doing drugs, getting hooked on drugs, coming down on drugs, and then starting the whole process over and over again.' Here's the rub, though: almost everyone in the group believed this book was not a pleasure to read. However, the dismal subject matter was very well written. I highlighted these two quotes from the book to best explain the totality of the experience: * 'Junk is not like alcohol or weed, a means to increase enjoyment in life. Junk is not a kick, it’s a way of life.' * 'A junkie runs on junk time. When his junk is cut off, the clock runs down and stops. All he can do is hang on and wait for non-junk time to start.' I mentioned that the book begins to get boring, as if you are reading the same story repeatedly, and it is a depressing story. However, one member in the group brought up the idea that therein lies the genius of the book. The author, through his main character, William Lee, depicts the lives of people suffering from addiction. Burroughs captures that seedy life well. While I was reading, the third section of the book, with its descriptive imagery, immediately reminded me of the film *Queer*, which is about the follow-up book to *Junkie*. I did a little research into the matter only to discover that the last third of the book is actually the beginning of the book *Queer*. Burroughs' publisher demanded 40 more pages for *Junkie* to be published, so Burroughs, just to provide filler, submitted the beginning of *Queer*. This book is an excellent segue into viewing the film *Queer*. Our group gave *Junkie* a 3.5 score out of 5, which I found surprising. Some of the book's highlights included its detached first-person narrative and its use of vernacular language. I highly suggest reading the book’s Glossary prior to reading. Finally, though the subject matter was depressing, Burroughs most certainly proved that he knew how to write.