Customer Reviews

Charles Bukowski: Laughing with the Gods

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Let's face it: If you like Bukowski (Hank, for those who really adore him), nothing is too much. You probably have already read "Bukowski - A Life" (by Neeli Cherkovski) and most of his books and, if like him like I do, you have read them all several times. And, every time you finish one of his books, you say to yourself: "I want more!" Well, now you got it! Fernanda Pivano asks the right questions, and Hank answers them, just like he wrote his best books. Sometimes, he's funny. Sometimes, he's mean. Sometimes, he's sincere. But, always, you have truth. His truth, at least. So, buy this book, buy some beers and read it. You'll have just one problem: You'll want more.

interesting quick read about a foreign journalist's interview experience with bukowski not great but interesting

I read this book right after Sunlight Here I Am, a collection of Bukowski interviews. This book is more of the same --- Bukowski is irreverent, with strong convictions about life and writing, but if you've already read a stack of his books, you knew that. He doesn't always deliver the goods in interviews (he's often bored with the questions), but his point of view is honest and world-weary enough to keep you turning the pages.

Fernanda Pivano brings a European and female sensibility to the affair. Bukowski is bigger in Europe than in the US, so when she asks him about fame, he has interesting things to say. (He can walk down the street and be anonymous here, but he's often recognized in Italy, France, and Germany.) And because she's a woman, the interviews don't touch on any macho posturing. She knows he's a big-hearted guy under the tough exterior, so she goes straight for the answers about art and love, bypassing the tales of heavy drinking and barroom fights.

All in all, this is a reasonably entertaining and insightful book for the new Bukowski fan. It's Bukowski at his most thoughtful and relaxed. For those of you who have read all of his books, you won't find anything new here (although you won't feel ripped off reading it, either).

I do not quite understand why this should be a recommended Buk-Book. It is a fairly interesting interview, alright. But if you're going to spend money on Bukowski: buy HIS books. And if you want biographical information, go with Howard Sounes. To get a real good look on Bukowski you also might want to check out the 'Bukowski-Tapes' - Film-Interviews by Barbet Schroeder. Pivano's Interview reveals nothing new is not really worth the money.

It is a great book! Fun to read, exciting to the end - it's got everything a great book ough to have.

It may be a small matter to buk fans who have recently come to read his work, but the previous reviewer who quotes Fernanda Pivano as having said, "......you cannot read them and ever come away the same", has taken a leap that must be corrected. On the back cover of Erections, Ejaculations, Exhibitions and General Tales of Ordinary Madness, City Lights Books, Second printing January 1973, edited by Gail Chiarrello, the third paragraph reads: "With Bukowski, the votes are still coming in. There seems to be no middle ground...people seem to either love him or hate him. Tales of his own life and doing are as wild and weird as the very stories he writes. In a sense, Bukowski is a legend in his time...a madman, a recluse, a lover...tender vicious...never the same...these are exceptional stories that come pounding out of his violent and depraved life...horible and holy...you cannot read them and ever come away the same again." As the reader will note, the photo on the bookcover was from 1980--lets keep the facts as facts.

Thomas Young tyoung@cyberzane.net