{"product_id":"9781119833222","title":"Popular Music and American Literary Culture","description":"\u003ch3\u003eAmerican Literary Culture\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003ch1\u003ePopular Music and American Literary Culture\u003c\/h1\u003e\u003ch3\u003eKirk Curnutt\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cb\u003eLiterary Criticism \/ American \/ General\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eExplores how American Literature has represented the sound and spirit of popular music\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the birth of rhythm and blues to the rise of hip-hop, American writers have long grappled with how to capture in words the energy, rebellion, and cultural power of popular music. \u003ci\u003ePopular Music and American Literary Culture \u003c\/i\u003etraces this complex relationship, offering the most comprehensive exploration yet of how novelists, poets, and playwrights have responded to the sounds that have defined the last eight decades of American life. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKirk Curnutt examines how writers have celebrated, critiqued, and been inspired by the sonic revolutions of their time—from Elvis and Motown to punk and rap—while questioning literature’s ability to match music’s visceral immediacy. Moving from 1950s pulp paperbacks to twenty-first-century drama, Curnutt uncovers how depictions of performers, fans, and media reflect broader debates about art, authenticity, and cultural authority. His wide-ranging readings recover overlooked works and authors who confronted rock and soul with as much seriousness as the revered voices of American fiction, poetry, and theater. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIlluminating how writers have tried, and often struggled, to translate rhythm, emotion, and the pulse of a generation into prose and verse, \u003ci\u003ePopular Music and American Literary Culture:\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e \u003cli\u003eAddresses scholarship on rock, soul, funk, and hip-hop within a single, cohesive framework\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eReveals how literary portrayals of music reflect shifting cultural attitudes toward race, class, gender, and generational identity\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eExamines canonical authors including Thomas Pynchon and James Baldwin, as well as overlooked writers such as Kristin Hunter and Greg Randolph\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eReclaims forgotten or neglected texts that expand the boundaries of American musical and literary study\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eIntegrates historical, cultural, and formal perspectives to show the evolution of music in American artistic consciousness\u003c\/li\u003e \u003c\/ul\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003ePopular Music and American Literary Culture: Reading the Beat\u003c\/i\u003e is ideal for undergraduate and graduate courses in American literature, popular culture, and music history. It is especially relevant for English, American Studies, and Cultural Studies programs seeking to blend literary analysis with media and performance studies. Written in an engaging and accessible style, it is also well-suited for general readers interested in the interplay between sound and story in American artistic life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e  \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKIRK CURNUTT\u003c\/b\u003e is Professor and Chair of English at Troy University, where he teaches courses in American literature and popular music. He is the author of numerous works on F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and the 1970s, as well as studies of Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys. He served more than two decades as Managing Editor of the \u003ci\u003eF. Scott Fitzgerald Review\u003c\/i\u003e and as Executive Director of the F. Scott Fitzgerald Society. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ctable\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePublication Date: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e13 April 2026\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePublisher: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWiley\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eImprint: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWiley\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eISBN-13: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e9781119833222\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFormat: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePaperback \/ softback\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePage Count: \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e336\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eWeight (oz): \u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e16.8\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e","brand":"Wiley","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44775298072716,"sku":"9781119833222","price":32.36,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0710\/9545\/1788\/files\/9781119833222.jpg?v=1780175508","url":"https:\/\/fh90cf-fv.myshopify.com\/products\/9781119833222","provider":"Late Knight Books and Services, LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}