Fourteen contributions from scholars in the U.S. and abroad discuss the Beat movement in literature. The majority of the essays explore the works of Jack Kerouac, William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, and Gary Snyder. Other topics include a discussion of Chicano writer Oscar Zeta Acosta as a Beat writer and the influence of the Beats on contemporary German and Dutch literature. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)