The legendary 1951 scroll draft of On the Road published as Kerouac originally composed itIN
THREE WEEKS in April of 1951 Jack Kerouac wrote his first full draft of On the Road typed as a
single-spaced paragraph on eight long sheets of tracing paper which he later taped together to
form a 120-foot scroll. A major literary event when it was published in Viking hardcover in
2007 this is the uncut version of an American classic rougher wilder and more provocative
than the official work that appeared heavily edited in 1957. This version capturing a moment
in creative history represents the first full expression of Kerouac s revolutionary
aesthetic.For more than seventy years Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic
literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1 700 titles Penguin Classics
represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and
disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions
and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors as well as up-to-date
translations by award-winning translators.
