Review of Henry Miller’s study on Arthur Rimbaud, The Time of the Assassins, appearing in Riot Material.
“Published in 1956, when atomic anxiety and McCarthy-led witch-hunts were all the rage, Miller’s book functions on multiple levels. It is a meditative essay on both the myth and reality of Rimbaud, a hymn to soul-play and self-expression, a whetted scalpel dissecting white-wig morality and ready-made life-wear, and, as always is the case with Miller, a peep-show into the author’s psyche. You could also say that it’s a ticking time-bomb of a spiritual guide, or self-help book with black lung, as Miller summons the verve and electric strain of such prophetic heavies as Blake and Whitman in raising the roof.”
Read the full review here.