Junky by William S. Burroughs
William S. Burroughs’ first novel describes the relentless travels of William Lee through the dizzying, drug-addled neighborhoods of 1940’s New York, New Orleans, and Mexico City. Junky is an unabashedly honest account of the ghostly and extraordinary world of the heroin addict.
Written in hard-boiled, understated prose, Junky follows William Lee into the depths of the post-war heroin subculture: from drug peddling and dealing to hallucinations, junk sickness, and bizarre nighttime encounters. As Lee observes that “Junk is not, like alcohol or weed, a means to increased enjoyment of life. Junk is not a kick. It is a way of life,” Burroughs boldly exposes the single-minded, fevered mindset of a heroin junkie.
“One of the most compelling and brilliant challenges any contemporary writer has raised against the absurd jurisdiction of death.”
The Washington Post
A documentary film about the late author, William S. Burroughs: A Man Within, is set for theatrical release this fall. Burroughs’ most famous work, Naked Lunch, was one of the last books to be banned and prosecuted for obscenity by the U.S. government.