A selection of front covers of various editions of On the Road (click on thumbnail to enlarge)
"When I'm old, you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to study languages reading these."
(Kerouac's comment on the foreign editions of his books, 1966.)
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| Deutsch 1958 | Deutsch 1958 | Pan Giant 1961 | Pan 1963 | Deutsch 1968 | Deutsch 1970 | Penguin 1972 |
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| Deutsch 1973 | Penguin 1980 | Penguin 1987 | Penguin 1989 | Penguin 1991 | Penguin 1998 | Penguin 1999 |
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| Penguin 2000 | Penguin 2007 | Allen Lane 2007 | Penguin 2007 | Penguin 2008 | Penguin 2008 | Penguin (Aus) 2008 |
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| Penguin 2011 | Penguin 2011 | Penguin 2012 | Penguin (Tele) 2012 | Penguin (Aus) 2012 | Penguin 2017 | Penguin 2018 |
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Penguin 2018 | Penguin 2019 | Penguin 2022 |
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| Viking 1957 | Viking 1960 | Viking 1962 | Viking 1971 | Viking 1974 | Signet 1958 | Signet 1965 |
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| Signet 1967 | Signet 1968 | Signet 1977 | Signet 1982 | Penguin 1980 | Penguin 1990 | Penguin 1990 |
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| Penguin 1991 | Penguin 1994 | Penguin 1999 | Penguin 2002 | Penguin 2003 | Penguin 2005 | Amereon 1976 |
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| Buccaneer 1978 | Viking 1979 | Penguin 1979 | Quality 1993 | Viking 1997 | Penguin 2007 | Viking 2007 |
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| Lib of America 2007 | Viking 2007 (proof) | Viking 2007 | Penguin 2008 | Folio 2010 | Penguin 2011 | Penguin 2011 |
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| Penguin 2011 | Penguin 2012 | Penguin 2012 | Penguin 2012 | Penguin 2016 | Penguin 2019 |
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| Rowohlt 1959 | Rowohlt 1959 | Rororo 1968 | Reclam (GDR) 1978 | Rororo 1993 | Bertelsmann 1996 | Rororo 1998 |
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| Rororo 2000 | Rororo 2002 | Rororo 2004 | Rororo 2006 | Steidl 2009 | Rororo 2010 | Rororo 2011 |
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| Rororo 2012 (proof) | Rororo 2012 |
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| De Bezige Bij 1961 | De Bezige Bij 1970 | De Bezige Bij 1974 | De Bezige Bij 1978 | De Bezige Bij 1988 | De Bezige Bij 1989 | De Bezige Bij 1994 |
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| De Bezige Bij 1996 | De Bezige Bij 1999 | Areopagus 2004 | De Bezige Bij 2006 | De Bezige Bij 2007 | De Bij 2012 | De Bezige Bij 2020 |
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| Gallimard 1960 | Gallimard 1972 | Gallimard 1987 | Gallimard 1990 | Gallimard 1997 | Gallimard 2003 | Gallimard 2004 |
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| Gallimard 2007 | Gallimard 2010 | Gallimard 2012 | Gallimard 2012 | Gallimard 2012 | Gallimard 2022 |
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| Mondadori 1959 | Mondadori 1967 | Mondadori 1970 | Mondadori 1970 | Mondadori 1970 | Mondadori 1974 | Mondadori 1981 |
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| Euroclub 1985 | Mondadori 1989 | Leonardo 1992 | Edizione Club 1992 | Club Degli 1993 | Mondadori 1995 | Mondadori 1995 |
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| Euroclub 1996 | Mondadori 1998 | Mondadori 1999 | Mondadori 2000 | Mondadori 2001 | Mondadori 2001 | Bib. di Rep. 2002 |
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| Mondadori 2006 | Mondadori 2006 | Mondadori 2007 | Mondadori 2007 | Mondadori 2009 | Mondadori 2010 | Mondadori 2010 |
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| Mondadori 2012 | Mondadori 2014 | Mondadori 2015 | Mondadori 2016 | Mondadori 2017 |
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| Star Books 1975 | Bruguera 1981 | Bruguera 1983 | Narradores 1988 | Anagrama 1989 | Circulo de Lect. 1994 | RBA Editores 1995 |
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| Biblioteca 2001 | Anagrama 2002 | Anagrama 2006 | Anagrama 2009 | Anagrama 2012 | CreateSpace 2016 | CreateSpace 2016 |
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| Editorial Pòrtic 1989 | Edicions 62 1996 | Edicions 62 1998 | Edicions 62 2000 | Edicions 62 2009 | Labutxaca 2010 | Anagrama 2010 |
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| Anagrama 2019 |
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| Pasazaite 2018 |
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| Faktoria K De Libros 2020 |
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| Albania 2013 | Argentina 1959 | Argentina 1969 | Argentina 1975 | Argentina 1977 | Armenia 2020 | Brazil 1984 |
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| Brazil 1986 | Brazil 1987 | Brazil 1997 | Brazil 2004 | Brazil 2008 | Brazil 2012 | Brazil 2013 |
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| Brazil 2014 | Brazil 2015 | Bulgaria 1981 | Bulgaria 1983 | Bulgaria 1993 | China 1998 | China 2001 |
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| China 2006 | China 2009 | China 2011 | China 2012 | China 2012 | China 2020 | China 2020 |
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| China 2020 | Croatia 1971 | Croatia 1997 | Croatia 2008 | Czech 1978 | Czech 1980 | Czech 1980 (jacket) |
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| Czech Rep. 1994 | Czech Rep. 1997 | Czech Rep. 2005 | Czech Rep. 2009 | Czech Rep. 2015 | Czech Rep. 2019 | Denmark 1960 |
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| Denmark 1986 | Denmark 1988 | Denmark 1998 | Denmark 2008 | Denmark 2012 | Estonia 1996 | Estonia 2006 |
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| Estonia 2011 | Finland 1964 | Finland 1980 | Finland 1988 | Finland 2000 | Finland 2007 | Finland 2012 |
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| Georgia 2012 | Georgia 2012 | Greece 1981 | Greece 1984 | Greece 1988 | Greece 1996 | Greece 2007 |
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| Greece 2015 | Hungary 1966 | Hungary 1983 | Hungary 1994 | Hungary 1999 | Hungary 2004 | Hungary 2011 |
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| Hungary 2012 | Iceland 1988 | Iceland 2008 | Iceland 2008 | Iran 2017 | Iran 2018 | Iran 2019 |
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| Israel 1988 | Israel 2009 | Israel 2012 | Japan 1959 | Japan 1970 | Japan 1977 | Japan 1983 |
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| Japan 2007 | Japan 2007 | Japan 2010 | Latvia 2003 | Latvia 2007 | Lebanon 2007 | Lithuania 1972 |
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| Lithuania 1991 | Lithuania 2004 | Lithuania 2007 | Lithuania 2009 | Lithuania 2010 | Macedonia 2000 | Macedonia 2010 |
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| Norway 1992 | Norway 1996 | Norway 2004 | Norway 2012 | Poland 1993 | Poland 2005 | Poland 2011 |
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| Poland 2012 | Portugal 1960 | Portugal 1978 | Portugal 1998 | Portugal 2003 | Portugal 2011 | Portugal 2012 |
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| Romania 1970 | Romania 1998 | Romania 2003 | Romania 2009 | Romania 2012 | Russia 1960 | Russia 2000 |
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| Russia 2002 | Russia 2003 | Russia 2006 | Russia 2010 | Russia 2012 | Russia 2012 | Russia 2013 |
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| Russia 2013 | Russia 2020 | Russia 2021 | Russia 2021 | Serbia 2005 | Serbia 2008 | Serbia 2015 |
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| Slovakia 1991 | Slovakia 2002 | Slovakia 2011 | Slovakia 2011 | Slovenia 1967 | Slovenia 1998 | Slovenia 2004 |
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| Slovenia 2010 | South Korea 2009 | South Korea 2009 | Sweden 1958 | Sweden 1958 | Sweden 1965 | Sweden 1976 |
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| Sweden 1980 | Sweden 1988 | Sweden 2003 | Sweden 2009 | Sweden 2012 | Sweden 2016 | Taiwan 1999 |
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| Taiwan 1999 | Thailand 2015 | Turkey 1993 | Turkey 2008 | Turkey 2009 | Turkey 2017 | Ukraine 1995 |
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And finally, Jack Kerouac's own design for a book cover in 1952. It was never used - until 2011 in Slovakia. |
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| Ukraine 2001 | Vietnam 2008 | Vietnam 2011 | Yugoslavia 1988 | Kerouac 1952 |
This published version of On the Road was Kerouac's third attempt at writing his road novel.
The first was begun in November 1948 and featured hero Ray Smith. This was abandoned, and
a second version started in March 1949 with hero Ray "Red" Moultrie.
Further attempts were made in 1950 but proved to be false starts. It was only after Kerouac was
inspired by the letters of Neal Cassady in late 1950 that he sought to write in a similar free-flowing
style, the result of which was the famous scroll version of April 1951, which became the basis of the
published version.
Kerouac was, however, still dissatisfied with the result and, having been introduced to the concept
of "sketching" with words in the fall of 1951, he began working on yet another version of his road book,
completing it while staying at the Cassady home in San Francisco in the early months of 1952.
Originally titled Visions of Neal, the book, which included a rewrite of the main events described
in its forerunner, was only published in its complete form, as Visions of Cody, three years after
Kerouac's death, in 1973.
Compiled by Dave Moore
Thanks to Rod Anstee, Jerry Cimino, Jonathan Collins, Jim Ferguson, Giorgio Gelmini, Niels Hansen, Thomas Kauertz,
Max Nemtsov, Andrew Sclanders, Vojo Sindolic, Horst Spandler, Jeff Taylor, and Joe Tily for the use of their book cover images.
A selection of books by William S. Burroughs can be found here:
A selection of books by Neal Cassady can be found here:
A selection of books by John Clellon Holmes can be found here:
A selection of books by David Goodis can be found here:
More Kerouac book covers can be found here:
Visit the Kerouac Companion for definitive character keys and family trees, and more ...
