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Charles Bukowski Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life Howard Sounes 9780802136978 Books

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Charles Bukowski Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life Howard Sounes 9780802136978 Books

Charles Bukowski was a unique voice in literature with cross-overs from everything from Beats to Punk of Parisian avant garde. Sounes seems to know the writer and have researched; however, I am appalled at the lack of support for his work. This is not a finely tuned biography with sources sited. He alludes to where the words of the poems or books developed but does not give adequate academic citation. Despite his affinity for Bukowski, the reader has no way of knowing whether or not conversations are legitimate--whether taken from interviews or merely recreated from conversation.
Also, Bukowski alcohol, sex, drug life makes him the kind of character that projects to the reader (as with Montgomery Clift and other trouble artists), how much longer can he last--or better yet how much more can I bear to read of this personal destruction.

If I were looking for serious information about the author, this is a reference that I would not consider substantially academic as to be helpful.


Tags : Charles Bukowski: Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life [Howard Sounes] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <div>A former postman and long-term alcoholic who did not become a full-time writer until middle age,Howard Sounes,Charles Bukowski: Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life,Grove Press,0802136974,Literary,BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY Literary Figures,Biography & Autobiography,Biography & Autobiography Literary,Biography Autobiography,BiographyAutobiography,Biography: general,Bukowski, Charles - Prose & Criticism

Charles Bukowski Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life Howard Sounes 9780802136978 Books Reviews

Sounes writes well. A nice background to an interesting life story.
This isn't the best volume of Bukowski that I've ever read, but it isn't the worst either. I think that means something because I've read most of what he published during his lifetime- I used to look forward to the next book of poems, the next novel, year by year. The posthumous collections have been worthwhile in my opinion. This is all stuff that fits the flow of his life narrative. He needed to get it out; it isn't just filler and rejects. There are enough reminiscences about the old days to hold your interest if that was your favorite period of his life (though he makes it clear that to go out and try to live that way when you've got other options is insane.) Buk didn't have a choice and he points out that he was the luckiest man alive to have survived it.

As for this being "mellow" Bukowski, yes, I think he even uses that term in one of the poems. Plus he clearly let his hatred of his father go. However, he also states that he has never really had any peace in his life. Sure, his cancer took some of the fight out of him, but he never surrendered. He says in one poem that you have to "accept terrible reality", but that doesn't mean he ever surrendered to terrible reality.
We who read Charles Bukowski know the persona he projected through his work. Some focus on his drunken exploits. Some focus on his integrity. Some focus on his indominability in the face of rejection and defeat. Some focus on his marvelous and sad interactions with women. All that is found in this biography, as well as the contrast between his written persona and his lived character. Your view of him will be changed, though (for me at least) not diminished.
As a bonus there are a number of photos tucked away in spots - maddeningly unmarked in the edition - that show him and the people he was close to throughout his life.
I own every Black Sparrow and ECCO book Charles Bukowski wrote, as well as several other older books put out by other publishers (also the City Lights books). I think that several of the books published posthumously lack in some ways, but The Flash of Lightning Behind the Mountain is, I feel, his best posthumous book, and maybe one of his best books overall. The poetry is a little more mellow here, but that's understandable considering the place he was in at this point in his life. Some of the themes Buk tackles in this book are his drinking (of course), his childhood (as always), going to the track (naturally), visiting the hospital for his leukemia, his "evil" father, as well as relaxing and growing old with Linda, his wife. I think John Martin did a great job of editing this collection, and I'll never tire of reading it. I think hard core fans will enjoy it as much as newbies. Recommended.
I first discovered the work of Charles Bukowski approximately five years ago, and I was immediately impressed. The more I read the more I enjoyed. I had heard all the legendary tales, the horror stories and the millions of tales of drunken mania, but I purposely stayed away from reading anything ABOUT the man. I didn't want to be disappointed when the reality is often times a far cry from the truth.
Eventually I broke down and bought this book, simply because the countless stories of his life were really becoming too much, and I wanted to know a little more about the man. If at all possible, from an independent observer who was not a Bukowski crony. I think this book accomplishes the task of being a reasonably detached look at the life of a complicated individual, with a few complaints.
First, the author obviously fell in love with Bukowski during this book (or perhaps before he even wrote it), and it shows constantly. There are admitted mistakes in his life, but the real warts are brushed over rather quickly.
Second, the book felt rushed. I think the book would have been much better if the author took his time and wrote a comprehensive 500-700 page book, which he obviously could have done. There are more than enough things to write about. Whole accounts of his womanizing and his time with the LA Free Press are just glanced over. I think it cheated the reader
Lastly, the author quickly passes over the interpersonal relationships Bukowski formed and spoke almost exclusively of events. Events don't tell us the whole story, and what he did write about the relationships was shallow at best. Linda King was the only one who had any depth added. The lack of interpersonal discussions really failed to bring out the third dimension in this book, and it fell a little flat.
The good thing for the author is that he writes well, and thankfully, Charles Bukowski is an interesting subject. I find it hard to believe anyone could really make his life boring. So the book is worth reading, especially if you are like me and don't know much about the man, but if you do I think the reader might find this a bit overly simplistic.
If I could have I would have rated this a 3.5 star book. Because I like Bukowski's work, I will round up. I am huge fan of biographies and this just isn't one of the better ones.
Charles Bukowski was a unique voice in literature with cross-overs from everything from Beats to Punk of Parisian avant garde. Sounes seems to know the writer and have researched; however, I am appalled at the lack of support for his work. This is not a finely tuned biography with sources sited. He alludes to where the words of the poems or books developed but does not give adequate academic citation. Despite his affinity for Bukowski, the reader has no way of knowing whether or not conversations are legitimate--whether taken from interviews or merely recreated from conversation.
Also, Bukowski alcohol, sex, drug life makes him the kind of character that projects to the reader (as with Montgomery Clift and other trouble artists), how much longer can he last--or better yet how much more can I bear to read of this personal destruction.

If I were looking for serious information about the author, this is a reference that I would not consider substantially academic as to be helpful.