I wanted to quote Jack Kerouac in celebration of his birthday later this month and recalled the photo above (in true Kerouacian form, I wasn’t even standing still long enough for the photo to finish taking).
Four years ago, at the Harvard Coop bookstore, I stumbled upon this curious sign. I inquired about it as I purchased a copy of “The Sun Also Rises.” The cashier told me that they had this placard made because so many people were stealing these authors’ books as a tip of the cap to the jobless, anti-capitalism, beat generation writers.
The staff had to start keeping those books behind the counter a-la cigarettes and scratch tickets. It seems other bookstores have done the same. Maybe Kerouac’s quote should read: “Live, travel, adventure, bless and don’t pay for books.”
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As we tip our caps to Kerouac, we hope you will enjoy the Café‘s offerings this month.
Our Featured Artist for March is Steve Sangapore. His series of paintings challenges the viewer to think and feel simultaneously, while exploring the relationship between consciousness and matter. Intrigued? Confused? Stay tuned.
Next, we have the poetry of Allison Whittenberg. She’s not afraid to tackle the pro-life/pro-choice debate, nor the issues of race and incarceration. And if that’s not enough, how about cannibalism?
Our fiction piece this month slithers to you from Kathryn Holzman. Her short story is packed with drama, be it politics, environmentalism, mental illness, romance and, dare I say, some violence. Brew up a fresh cup for this one!
This month’s podcast is a swashbuckling high seas adventure called “Captain Blackwell’s Prize” – a double entendre on the “prize” that a ship’s captain obtains when he defeats another ship. In addition to the riches on board, Captain Blackwell inherits another sort of prize, more beautiful than all the gold and silver trinkets. Tune in each Saturday morning all March for this serial podcast.
As always, you can find us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Drop us a line and let us know what you think of our Fresh Java this month or just say hello!
