Huge Dreams brings back two books, long out of print, that are a cornerstone of the Beat movement. For the first time in one volume, The New Book / Book of Torture and Star present vividly contrasting sides of Poetry's consciousness. A classic example of immediate biological expression, The New Book / Book of Torture simultaneously delves into - and delivers - Michael McClure from his self-christened "dark night of the soul." Star, a book of wide-ranging exploration, spiritual discovery, and political protest, springs from the essence of our humanity - emotions, the sensations of Eros, and play. Both books were influential in expanding poetry into a larger world that focused on nature, the environment, antiwar activities, individual anarchism, Zen Buddhism, jazz, and a kind of romantic mystical thought. Together these two books impart a sense of the rich texture and individuality that fuelled the Beat scene.
