Ken Kesey Books

Ken Kesey, a pivotal figure in American literature and culture, is celebrated for his impactful debut novel, which was a major success. His subsequent work, Sometimes a Great Notion, showcases his literary ambition. Beyond fiction, Kesey's influence extended to the counterculture movement of the 1960s, where he emerged as a charismatic leader in the West Coast LSD scene. His diverse body of work, including novels and children's books, reflects his unique perspective and lasting impact on literature and society.

You've never met anyone like RANDLE PATRICK McMURPHY...the hero of KEN KESEY'S ONE FLEW OVER THE CUKOO'S NEST He's a boisterous, brawling, fun-loving rebel who swaggers into the ward a mental hospital and takes over... He's a lusty profane, life-loving fighter who rallies the other patients around him by challenging the dictatorship of Big Nurse. He promotes gambling in the ward, smuttles in wine and women. At every turn, he openly defies her rule. The contest starts as sport (with McMurphy taking bets on the outcome) but soon it develops into a grim struggle for the minds and hearts of the men, into an all-out war between two relentless opponents. Big Nuse backed by the full power of authority...McMurphy, who has only his own indomitable will. (back cover)

The magnificent second novel from the legendary author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest... Following the astonishing success of his first novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Ken Kesey wrote what Charles Bowden calls "one of the few essential books written by an American in the last half century." This wild-spirited tale tells of a bitter strike that rages through a small lumber town along the Oregon coast. Bucking that strike out of sheer cussedness are the Stampers. Out of the Stamper family's rivalries and betrayals Ken Kesey has crafted a novel with the mythic impact of Greek tragedy.

The magnificent second novel from the legendary author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Sailor Song is a wild-spirited and hugely powerful tale of an Oregon logging clan. A bitter strike is raging in a small lumber town along the Oregon coast. Bucking that strike out of sheer cussedness are the Stampers: Henry, the fiercely vital and overpowering patriarch; Hank, the son who has spent his life trying to live up to his father; and Viv, who fell in love with Hank's exuberant machismo but now finds it wearing thin. And then there is Leland, Henry's bookish younger son, who returns to his family on a mission of vengeance - and finds himself fulfilling it in ways he never imagined. Out of the Stamper family's rivalries and betrayals, Ken Kesey crafted a novel with the mythic impact of Greek tragedy.

Kesey is the author of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest". Featuring such characters as Buffalo Bill Cody and wrestler Frank "The Crusher" Gotch, this book is both a historical novel and a dime Western. It is set in the tiny town of Pendleton, home of the rodeo showdown.

An inmate of a mental institution tries to find the freedom and independence denied him in the outside world.

Een afgelegen vissersdorp aan de kust van Alaska schrikt op wanneer er plotseling een schitterend jacht uit Hollywood komt aanzeilen om er een Indiaanse sage te verfilmen.

In this collection of short stories, Ken Kesey challenges public and private demons with a wrestler's brave and deceptive embrace, making it clear that the energy of madness must live on.

Подобно многочисленным громким событиям, связанным с именем "веселого проказника" Кена Кизи, его первая книга "Над кукушкиным гнездом" (1962) произвела много шума в литературной жизни Америки. Кизи был признан талантливейшим писателем, а роман стал одним из главных произведений для битников и хиппи. "Над кукушкиным, гнездом" - это грубое и опустошающе честное изображение границ между здравомыслием и безумием. "Если кто-нибудь захочет ощутить пульс нашего времени, пусть читает Кизи. И если все будет хорошо и не изменится порядок вещей, его будут читать и в следующем веке", - писали в газете "Лос-Анджелес таймс". Действительно, и в наши дни книга продолжает жить и не теряет своей сумасшедшей популярности.