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And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
More than sixty years ago, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac sat down inNew York City to write a novel about the summer of 1944, when one of their friends killed another in a moment of brutal and tragic bloodshed. The two authors were then at the dawn of their careers, having yet to write anything of note. Alternating chapters and narrators, Burroughs and Kerouac pieced together a hard-boiled tale of bohemian New York during World War II, full of drugs and obsession, art and violence. The manuscript, called And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks after a line from a news story about a fire at a circus, was submitted to publishers but rejected and confined to a filing cabinet for decades. This legendary collaboration between two of the twentieth centuries most influential writers is set to be published for the first time in the fall of 2008. A remarkable, fascinating piece of American literary history, And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks is also an engrossing, atmospheric novel that brings to life a shocking murder at the dawn of the Beat Generation.
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wkm306
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
Pickpick

Is it possible to feel nostalgic about something you have not experienced? That good.

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wkm306
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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I want to read more of bohemian lives during the postwar period in New York. I prefer novellas to long, factual essays for the moment. Any suggestions? 🙏🏻

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wkm306
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs

I began to get a feeling familiar to me from my bartending days of being the only sane man in a nuthouse. It doesn't make you feel superior but depressed and scared, because there is nobody you can contact.

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AJ19
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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Two of the greats. Awesome read.

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tjwill
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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Sorry my #spinepoetry is gruesome. We have Kerouac and Burroughs to thank. #MarchIntoReading

LeahBergen 😂 8y
Laura317 That is some scary spine poetry!! 😳 8y
ReadingRover That's fantastic!😹 8y
54 likes3 comments
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Journalismchik
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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Pickpick

Honestly, I didn't know what to expect from this book. I'm a Kerouac fan but have never read anything by Burroughs. Turned out to be a pretty clever book. I loved the peek into the bohemian lifestyle of the 1940's. The different POV's were annoying at first but by the end it broke up any monotony (which there was little of). Definitely a book I recommend to Kerouac/Burroughs fans! #JackKerouac #WilliamSBurroughs

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KSamiljanaire
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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Pickpick

Definitely not for everyone but I absolutely loved it, especially the ending!

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KSamiljanaire
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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wkm306 This hasn't changed at all lol 4y
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OrangeMooseReads
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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#riotgrams #shelfie
(You're welcome for blacking out the dirty laundry and messy kitchen)

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Robothugs
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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Pickpick

What a ride this book was.

#24in48 onto book three!
#LitsyAtoZ: letter A

35 likes1 stack add
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danx
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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Lent this to a friend, but was overprotective of the dustcover. I read this on a plane to China, really engaging story, Jack and Bill taking alternate chapters. Early work too, written in 1945, and I love Junky and Queer and this fit in really well, although not released for decades, I think mostly to protect people who feature. Followed drink fueled adventures and the death of David Kammerer who was obsessed with Lucien Carr. Enjoyed!

danx This book came back to me yesterday, with a comment "the story didn't really go anywhere". Turns out I should've given some background of it being largely autobiographical, would've been a completely different context to read it in. 8y
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LaVaque
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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Pickpick

Written by two of my favorite writers. Love the scene creation and the dialogue.

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iamanidhwal
And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks | Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs
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"Al is one of the best guys I know, and you couldn't find better company. And Phillip is all right too. But when they get together something happens, and they form a combination which gets on everybody's nerves." - William S. Burroughs