7 h 21 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the drink that helps you belong becomes the enemy you cannot leave behind?
In John Barleycorn, Jack London traces his drinking back to a poor boyhood in Oakland, where alcohol seems part of becoming a man. He gives drink a face: John Barleycorn, the old English figure of grain turned into beer and whisky, becomes friend, tempter and enemy.
From oyster raids on San Francisco Bay to sealing voyages, the road and the Klondike, London finds drink woven into adventure and hard work. As he pursues writing, he keeps asking why a strong, clever man reaches for the bottle. His memoir brings the sea and saloon close while probing what alcohol does to the mind.
What you’ll discover
- The price of belonging Follow a boy learning that drinking opens a door into the company of men.
- Nights on the bay Join London among oyster pirates who raid private beds and sell their catch at dawn.
- A sailor's hard reward Step aboard the Sophie Sutherland, where sailors treat drink as the reward for a hard voyage.
- Ambition meets the bottle Watch London's determined pursuit of writing unfold alongside his continuing struggle with drink.
- The white logic Explore London's name for the cold, clear, hopeless reasoning that alcohol brings to his mind.
Is it for you?
This book suits readers who like frank life stories, sea and frontier adventure, or honest writing about addiction and its causes. It may be less suited to anyone wanting a modern recovery guide, since London writes in the manner of 1913.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A boy learns that men drink
- The oyster pirate and the saloon
- Sea, road and Klondike teach the habit
- Books, ambition and a new kind of drinking
- The white logic of alcohol
- What London makes of it all
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Language: Français
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
A boy learns that men drink
London was born in San Francisco in 1876 and grew up poor, in Oakland and on farms around the Bay. He says his first brush with alcohol came when he was very small. Carrying beer to his father at work, he sipped it and found himself drunk. The memory frightens him less than the way it fits a pattern he sees all around him.
In his account, drink is not a secret vice. It sits at the centre of working life. Men celebrate with it, grieve with it, close deals with it and prove themselves with it. A boy who refuses a drink risks being thought soft, and London says he wanted badly to be thought a man.
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The author
Jack London
1876–1916 · American novelist and journalist
Jack London (1876–1916) was an American author, journalist and social activist. He was born in San Francisco and lived in California. He wrote novels, short stories and essays. His novels include The Call of the Wild (1903), The Sea-Wolf (1904), White Fang (1906) and Martin Eden (1909). He died in California.
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What is John Barleycorn about?
It is Jack London's memoir of his lifelong relationship with alcohol. He traces his drinking from early childhood through the oyster beds, the sea, the road and his years as a rich author, and he argues about why people drink.
Who is John Barleycorn in the book?
John Barleycorn is the old English folk name for the spirit of the barley grain, and so for beer and whisky. London uses him as a character who tempts, flatters and finally threatens the drinker.
Is John Barleycorn a true story?
Yes, it is presented as autobiography, published in 1913. London draws on real episodes of his life, including his oyster pirate days and the Klondike. Like many memoirs, it is shaped and selected by the author.
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