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Ham on Rye - Bukowski

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  • 05-12-2006 5:53pm
    #1
    buck65
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,969 ✭✭✭


    Great read , superb coming of age story. Bukowski is a fantastic writer - also read his short story collection " The most beautiful woman in this town"
    anyone read him? opinions welcome


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    #2
    Earthhorse
    Registered Users Posts: 14,714 ✭✭✭✭Earthhorse


    Yup. Read Factotum, a few short stories, and a fair few poems, which, for someone as prolific as he was, is not a lot of what's out there.

    I kinda run hot and cold with him to be honest. I think he can write brilliantly, with real energy, observation and humour, but he tends to tread the same territory again and again, making the work somewhat repititous. In Factotum for instance, I can't count the number of times he was fired from a job, or got in a fight unnecessarily, or left work early to go to the track. And the short stories and poems also deal with these subjects.

    So, while I find him brilliant at times, I don't feel any under much obligation to seek out more of his work. If I do, it'll probably be the poetry, as it comes in just the right portions for my liking.


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    #3
    Psychedelic
    Registered Users Posts: 2,126 ✭✭✭Psychedelic


    yeah ham on rye is great. he's a totally different buckowski to the jerk he portrays himself as in post office, factotum and women (all great books too). been years since i read his stuff.


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    #4
    Red Hand
    Registered Users Posts: 4,986 ✭✭✭Red Hand


    Ham on Rye is one of the grittiest books I've ever read. He depicts alienation (some self-enforced, but that is there to a degree in all types of alienation) so vividly I thought it's simple, conversational was pretty effective.


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