BEAT VOICES

With the resurgence of interest in the Beats comes this timely anthology of both poetry and prose selections. The collection features words from Jack Kerouac's On the Road and Allen Ginsberg's Howl, along with pieces from such lights as Charles Bukowski, Neal Cassady, Gregory Corso, Diane di Prima, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Amiri Baraka (who was LeRoi Jones), Gary Snyder, and Philip Whalen. Kherdian chooses well, encompassing a representative sampling of major poets of the era, including a few women. Young adults will appreciate the poems, which demonstrate the rage and sensuality of the times, but in context, not just for shock. There is also useful information in the introduction and in ``After the Beat: On to the Hippies.'' The brief biographical notes at the end are quite helpful. The volume introduces the ambivalence of the age and would make a welcome gift not only for teenagers, but for their parents, as well. (Poetry. 12+)