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inlaraland 's review for:

Love Is a Dog from Hell by Charles Bukowski
1.0
challenging dark tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: N/A
Strong character development: N/A
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus: N/A

Oh, man...this was...something.

This is my first Bukowski read, and I will admit that I had a very negative reaction to his work (similarly to my experience with Nabokov when I first read Lolita). I've had a few people let me know their own thoughts, but these selection of poems were not for me at all. 

Beyond the writing style, I honestly could not see past the blatant misogynistic, pedophilic and vulgar messages. I think a part of me was trying to find purpose to the words, as I like to connect with poetry, and I really just couldn't. 

Somebody said that Bukowski is meant to show the raw, ugly side of life - no filters, no pretty words to veil the bluntnes, but...I still can't bring myself to appreciate this. 

I think what we consume has an impact on our reading experiences, and jumping into this work with no knowledge of what to expect but it definitely caught me off guard. 

I may consider reading one of his novels in the future to see if my opinion my change - but this not my favorite.

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