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3.65 AVERAGE
3.65 AVERAGE
funny
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
1/10 Literally the worst book I’ve ever read. I went into this expecting some commentary on toxic masculinity and how it can flourish in the monotony of everyday life and was sorely disappointed. First off the book does not understand how women’s bodies work, there is literally a line saying that a women was enjoying sex well for only having one ovary. Like what??? The writing is so moronic that I literally thought I was reading the wrong thing at first. I’ve read some of the other reviews praising this book and I can’t get my head around it, the entire things is just the main character being a dick then having sex rinse and repeat. There is no deeper insights or commentary, just that oh and he gets fired from a few jobs along the way. If you want a good book that centres around toxic masculinity through the lens of a man who only thinks about being an asshole and sex, read Filth by Irvine Welsh. It’s everything I thought this book would be while still being straight to the point and rough around the edges.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
dark
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved this one, Chinaski was a lot younger than he was in Post Office.
Bukowski and I are drinking beers.
Bukowski and I are drinking beers.
i would’ve given this 0 stars if i could’ve. this was honestly shit, if you are into reading about misogynistic, poor, miserable and alcholic men this is a book for you :-)
Entertaining and realistic. Absolute no-nonsense attitude towards life and it's difficulties.
This man is literally addicted to getting jobs and losing them.
I really enjoyed the first half of the book but it started to feel quite repetitive towards the end.
Bukowski is a one-trick pony. But as tricks go, it's pretty good. The bottom line is: if you've read one book by Bukowski, you've pretty much read them all. It's essentially the same story of a dirty old man, a bastard drunk misogynist, who hates work and likes booze and women with fat arses (even though he's supposed to be in his twenties). And that's one of the main problems with his books, they're all written from a later perspective, when he actually was a dirty old perv, and so they struggle to evoke any real sense of him being a younger man (with the possible exception of Ham on Rye where he manages to elevate the quality of the writing). So you're basically saturated in middle-aged cynicism, bloatedness, and whiskey from the word go. And it's actually very entertaining.
But like I said, you've read one, you've read them all. Had I read this one first, I might have liked it a lot more but because I read Post Office, Ham on Rye, and half of Women (before getting bored halfway through), this one really did start to feel like more of the same. It's always easy to read, occasionally funny, always disgusting, and soaked in endless body fluids and wasted living. Bukowski's alter ego, Henry Chinaski, goes from city to city, from dead-end job to dead-end job, from skanky whore to skanky whore. There are times when it's almost too absurd (such as the unrealistic boat sex with two women) and times when it's just a series of wasted experiences and relentless bleakness. The only part that has any romance or hope is his desire to be a writer, the section where he gets a short story accepted being a genuine moment of uplifting promise. Later to be followed by more drinking and downtrodden despair.
It's fun to read but ultimately nothing spectacular. My only major gripe is that he always says 'awakened' and never woke up. "I awakened this, I awakened that." Got on my nerves after a while but anyway... At the end of the day, all of Bukowski's books are essentially one long life story told in increments. This part was less interesting to me than the others. But as always, it's a life that feels lived, full of bland normal nothingness and disappointment, escapist binge-drinking, whores, and horse racing. It's hard not to like him. It's hard not to feel for sorry for him.
But like I said, you've read one, you've read them all. Had I read this one first, I might have liked it a lot more but because I read Post Office, Ham on Rye, and half of Women (before getting bored halfway through), this one really did start to feel like more of the same. It's always easy to read, occasionally funny, always disgusting, and soaked in endless body fluids and wasted living. Bukowski's alter ego, Henry Chinaski, goes from city to city, from dead-end job to dead-end job, from skanky whore to skanky whore. There are times when it's almost too absurd (such as the unrealistic boat sex with two women) and times when it's just a series of wasted experiences and relentless bleakness. The only part that has any romance or hope is his desire to be a writer, the section where he gets a short story accepted being a genuine moment of uplifting promise. Later to be followed by more drinking and downtrodden despair.
It's fun to read but ultimately nothing spectacular. My only major gripe is that he always says 'awakened' and never woke up. "I awakened this, I awakened that." Got on my nerves after a while but anyway... At the end of the day, all of Bukowski's books are essentially one long life story told in increments. This part was less interesting to me than the others. But as always, it's a life that feels lived, full of bland normal nothingness and disappointment, escapist binge-drinking, whores, and horse racing. It's hard not to like him. It's hard not to feel for sorry for him.
The phone rang. It rang several times before I could struggle out of bed and answer it.
"Mr Chinaski?"
"Yes."
"This is the Times Building."
"Yes?"
"We've reviewed your application and would like to employ you."
"Reporter?"
"No, maintenance man and janitor."