![]() First edition | |
Author | Jack Kerouac |
---|---|
Language | English |
Publisher | Avon |
Publication date | 1960 |
Publication place | United States |
Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
Pages | 96 pp |
OCLC | 24871127 |
813/.54 20 | |
LC Class | PS3521.E735 T73 1992 |
Preceded by | Maggie Cassidy (1959) |
Followed by | Lonesome Traveler (1960) |
Tristessa is a 1960 novella by Beat Generation writer Jack Kerouac set in Mexico City. It is based on his relationship with a Mexican prostitute (the title character). The woman's real name was Esperanza ("hope" in Spanish); Kerouac changed her name to Tristessa (a spelling he made up from tristeza which means "sadness" in Spanish).[1]
The novel was translated into Spanish by Mexican writer Jorge García-Robles.