Call Me Burroughs: A Life

Barry Miles has written a cultural biography of William Burroughs at an important moment. This clear-eyed, thoughtful book solidly rings out Burroughs' generation by placing him at the crossroads (and, sometimes, in the crosshairs) of the cultural moments he strides across. Here, also, is the ethos of post-war America that Burroughs, Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg helped create. Miles begins with the silent movie era of Burroughs' childhood in St. Louis amidst an ever-present and caring, but sometimes out-of-touch and emotionally distant, family group. Through these early relationships and, later, his restless wanderings among colleges which finally land him in New York City just before World War II, we are introduced to the way in which Burroughs builds up his writer's palette of images, but does not use them to further any sort of self-knowledge or significant prose for a number of years. The most engaging cultural moment to which Miles introduces us is New York City during the war. It's riveting, but it isn't pretty. Burroughs and his extended group of friends are not conventional in any way and it is their seeking after a "new vision," that leads, ultimately, to the language and culture of the Beats. This is a book lover's biography (not a literary biography, in the dry, academic sense) about a man in love with words, creatively drinking (and shooting up) and imagining his way through a maze of puritanical rules and mores, out the other side to something freer, less restrictive, dangerous in many ways. Burroughs and his Beat friends celebrated, denigrated, then tore down American society's twin gods -- wealth and prestige -- and replaced them, at least for themselves and those who came of age in the 1960s, with earthier elements. Sex is very important to Burroughs' story and Miles isn't prissy about describing the sex, both gay and straight, and the changing relationships within and on the fringes of the group. There is much tragedy within this tale of geniuses, misfits and dreamers and Miles tells it. The book is well-researched and told in a smooth prose style, utilizing Burroughs' own voice whenever possible. I wanted Burroughs' words in my head as I read about his life; so connected to each other, Kerouac finally got Burroughs to write and Burroughs got Kerouac to write better. I would not recommend this to the shy, retiring reader. There is every form of sex here, along with booze and meanness, crime and criminals, portrayed intimately in the glare of Burroughs' writer's lens. Burroughs needed to know everything and see it all. Barry Miles is hauling us along on that journey with him so we can better understand.

Many thanks to Barry Miles for this. Having read Ted Morgan's "Literary Outlaw" bio on Burroughs numerous times I awaited the release of this and was not let down. The opening chapter on a shaman ritual at Burroughs' Lawrence, KS house gives great weight to Burroughs' sentiments that "the Ugly Spirit" was indeed in him for most of his life and consequently created trials and adventures that Miles goes to great length to accumulate and write about in a detailed but far from plodding fashion. Miles had an advantage of getting a few more transformative years of Burroughs prior to his death researched as Morgan's book came out several years before. I recommend BOTH books though would rightfully suggest for chonological purposes the Morgan book first. It is clear Burroughs' last few years were spent surrendering to epiphanies and realizations that are break through conclusions in his life-long vision quest to find his place in the world (despite being shunned by his privelaged upbringing, Ivy League society, the military, etc.) and to get the full story at the finish line just makes the beauty and tragedy of Burroughs' complex life fighting the establishment and sacrificing himself to have a relatedness to "homosap" (as he would say) all the more satisfying. More than ever, "Smash The Control Machine". Thank you, Mr. Miles.

tons of information -- years of research by the estate -- but so much left out of it -- odd that certain living poets and publishers -- eg. Charley Plymell -- are not in the book at all. Gerard Malanga only in it once -- and none of his iconic photographs are used. Plymell and his CV Editions publishing worked with Burroughs on many projects, starting in 1964 or earlier. Not in the book at all. Certainly a must read, but again, no answers about why Miles or the estate left out certain people. Clearly a decision in a 700 page book which includes details such as William's dick length. (Short.) Since there will never be another biography on Burroughs, sad that it is seems purposely incomplete. Perhaps the estate had 'policies' ?

This is an exhaustive, yet intimate portrayal of our most incredibly "outsider" author- sometimes associated with the Beat Generation (although Burroughs clearly did not relish the link himself), eventually a forerunner and grandfather of the Punks. As a fellow writer, and reader of many of his books, my favorite sections are about his writing "process," of which there are less details. The parts of the book in which Burroughs got into cut-ups, collages, journaling, techniques that combined other arts with writing; or his "Ugly Spirit," and Burroughs' methods of daily subversion: these spoke the most to me. Overall, Burroughs seems very sad, even desperate, and perhaps this is truly the modern (post-modern?) American artist at his "work?" Still, I am a major fan, and so grateful for the impact of reading this American original with the cold, blue gaze. I do recommend this new massive, throughly researched biography, Call Me Burroughs.

Wild Bill Burroughs is a really interesting fellow. You would expect his biography to be interesting, and his life story to be a bit weird, and you won't be disappointed. Like all biographies of great men there's parts of it that you connect to around amending facts of existence. And then there's stuff that onlyI genius like boroughs could have thought about written about and created. If you like william Burroughs' work or even if you're just interested in the era before, during, and after the Beat generation this is the book for you.

A very detailed biography and no doubt the best on BUrroughs so far.

The best ever, most brilliant, right up close and in there with WSBurroughs ! All the big well-known themes are in this well-written 600-pg. bio. And access to WSB's papers has enabled veteran writer Barry Miles to produce a totally engaging volume. Miles writes: "He told Ginsberg that he became aware of the existence of "a benevolent sentient center to the whole Creation" that gave him the courage to dispassionately examine his entire life..." -- A remarkable deeper and more intimate picture of WSB is presented here than for us who only knew him by acquaintance casually and by some of his works or by some previously published biographical volumes. -- I was an ardent reader of his since 1980, and had the pleasure of attending one of his readings in Vancouver, British Columbia. His was a fine great artistic literary presence. -- Miles' bio also has some trenchant remarks regarding the novels, of course, and these comments are reinforced by WSB's own reflections on his literary work. -- This is a tremendous centennial publication, and every one of you interested in WSB specifically, or in great writers of the 20th century, will be enthralled with Barry Miles's "Call Me Burroughs".

Why does a Five Star review have a heading like Painful Read? The book is wonderfully written and engaging. Great job Barry Mills. However, the life of Bill Burroughs and his Beat Generation companions, moves, for three fourths of the book from disaster to disaster for him. Only in the latter part of his life does he seem to reach a sense of resolution. If you can't deal with counter culture, drugs and more drugs, alternative sexual orientations, guilt laden life, betrayal, off the track creativity and more in the raw, then find another book. But, if you can take the pain the book is a fantastic insight to the the arts and culture of the times. The descriptions of Tangiers in the 50's before the revolutions make one wish for more places in the world like that and can see why it attracted so many creative people.

This is an exhaustively researched biography (often sexually graphic -- wouldn't you?) commissioned, endorsed and researched by the estate. I've been a fan of this man's writing for 20 years and there's a lot here I didn't know and a lot of questions where answered. I doubt there's such a thing as a 'definitive' biography (so don't throw out your Ted Morgan's Literary Outlaw) but this is a must read.

Ottimo libro, dettagliato e ricco di notizie, scritto magistralmente bene come Miles ha sempre fatto.Lo consiglio a tutti gli appasionati di Burroughs e della Beat Generation