Psychedelic Press UK
Literary Reviews: 1945-1970
Literary Review: ‘Exploring Inner Space’ by Jane Dunlap (Adelle Davis)
Originally published in 1961 by Hardcourt, Brace & World ‘Exploring Inner Space: Personal experiences under LSD-25’ by Jane Dunlap is one of the earliest examples of both entheogenic literature and of a woman writing on the psychedelic experience. This beautifully crafted text explores her experiences over the course of 5 LSD sessions under Dr. Oscar … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘The Yage Letters – Redux’ By William Burroughs & Allen Ginsberg
Originally published by City Lights in 1963 ‘The Yage Letters’ has since been republished 3 times. This fourth edition ‘The Yage Letters: Redux’ was published in 2006; it is edited by Oliver Harris who’s also included a thorough introduction of the text’s history. The book is presented as an epistolary of largely letters between William … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘The Politics of Ecstasy’ By Timothy Leary
Originally published in 1968 ‘The Politics of Ecstasy’ is a collection of essays by, and interviews with, psychedelic troubadour Timothy Leary. The book contains Leary’s central ideas for the Sixties psychedelic revolution; both social and scientific. Arguably less well received than ‘The Psychedelic Experience’, it is in fact a much more insightful perspective on both … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘Psychedelic Prayers’ By Timothy Leary
Originally published in 1966, ‘Psychedelic Prayers after the Tao Te Ching’ by Timothy Leary is a work of textual interpretation, an exercise in creativity and an attempt to illuminate and guide the psychedelic experience through the lens of an ancient text. The cover drawing, a psychedelic, red horse motif, is illustrated by Michael Bowen. Having already … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test’ By Tom Wolfe
Originally published in 1968 ‘The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test’ by Tom Wolfe is both a remarkable work of journalism and a historical-literary classic. It follows the exploits of Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters as they trip their way round the US in the 1960s, turning on the masses and experimenting in group consciousness; all … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’ By Hunter S. Thompson
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas ‘Fear and loathing in Las Vegas – A savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream’ originally appeared in two parts, in Rolling Stone magazine, in November 1971. The novel appeared soon afterwards and has been re-printed many times since. Written by self-styled Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘The Joyous Cosmology’ By Alan Watts
‘The Joyous Cosmology – Adventures in Chemical Consciousness’, by British born philosopher Alan Watts, was originally published in 1962. Watts takes a variety of his psychedelic drug experiences and creates a single stream of consciousness that works together as if a single trip. The style is engaging, thoughtful and well constructed and retains much of his … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘The Psychedelic Experience’ by Timothy Leary, Ralph Metzner & Richard Alpert
In his introduction (Penguin 2008) to ‘The Psychedelic Experience: A manual based on the Tibetan Book of the Dead’(TPE), Daniel Pinchbeck describes the book as a “cultural artifact” that illustrates a “pivotal time in the historical development of psychedelic use and understanding the modern West.” I propose to critique the proposition that it is simply … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘The Doors of Perception & Heaven and Hell’ by Aldous Huxley
The Doors of Perception (1954) & Heaven and Hell (1956) are two essays written by English writer, Aldous Huxley (1894 – 1963.) The two are now, more often than not, bound together in a single volume, which form a remarkable insight into the beginnings of psychedelic culture. Through Huxley’s astute exploration of his own subjective, psychedelic experience … Continue reading
Literary Review: ‘Junky’ by William S. Burroughs
Junky, published in 1952, is one of the first examples of contemporary psychedelic literature. Not only does it have the structural theme of ‘travel’ throughout, in keeping with the Beat Generation feel, Junky is also laced with many concepts that came to categorize the coming counter-culture in psy-lit, and beyond. In doing so it … Continue reading
