Staff Favorites: On the Bum, On the Road, Sitting on a Dock in the Bay

Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell
Orwell ekes out a living, as Barbara Ehrenreich did in Nickel and Dimed, the disparity being that Orwell manages to survive several days deprived of food while residing in the most uninhabitable living spaces imaginable. Orwell recounts his experiences in Paris, where he lands a job at a hotel cafe that is the most filthy and putrid of all. He encounters makeshift sleeping situations; in some cases there is only one bed that he must share with another person or the occasional vermin. His hunger for a better life leads him on to yet another similar escapade in London.  ~ Tessa, High Point

The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac
This is a story of self discovery and the search for inner peace. Very different from Kerouac’s well known On the Road, The Dharma Bums is a classic in its own right. Here, Kerouac’s alter ego, Ray Smith, is searching for enlightenment. Ray’s search takes him from mountaintops, to meditation, to hitchhiking home for Christmas. Poet Gary Snyder, appearing as Japhy Ryder, is his main guide on the journey; but Ray is also aided by other beat icons, family, and strangers. Beautifully written, and filled with memorable characters; The Dharma Bums is a great read for Kerouac fans and non-fans alike.    ~ Erin, Queen Anne

I Cover the Waterfront by Max Miller
What’s this book with the vaguely familiar title about? Not much, really. A lowly young waterfront reporter in San Diego marks time watching life wash in and out on the tides, while waiting for literary fame to knock down his door. What makes this book so utterly endearing is Miller’s bemused, sideways outlook—a low key, sardonic whimsy that will ring true with anyone who has ever felt life slip sliding away towards nowhere in particular. A treasure.  ~  David,  Fiction