The book continues to inspire a new group of readers of each subsequent generation since its original publication in 1957. The book received moderate success at that time, reaching number 11 on the best seller list. It still continues to sell at a moderate but consistent level, appealing mostly to the younger audience. However, the Kerouac flame is also carried on by aging poets/writers and other 'artist' types, many who read Kerouac back when the book was first published. They are still enthusiatic and their ability to appreciate the creative word has not diminished over time.
Even Kerouac didn't expect the movie version to be identical to the book. He wrote in a letter to Marlon Brando dated 1957, "Don't worry about the structure, I know to compress and re-arrange the plot a bit to give a perfectly acceptable movie-type structure: making it into one all-inclusive trip instead of the several voyages coast-to-coast in the book, one vast round trip from New York to Denver to Frisco to Mexico to New Orleans to New York again. I visualize the beautiful shots could be made with the camera on the front seat of the car showing the road (day and night) unwinding into the windshield, as Sal and Dean yak. I wanted you to play the part because Dean (as you know) is no dopey hotrodder but a real intelligent (in fact Jesuit) Irishman. You play Dean and I'll play Sal (Warner Bros. mentioned I play Sal) and I'll show you how Dean acts in real life...we can go visit him in Frisco..."
