Customer Reviews

Pulp

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Written as he was fighting the illness that would kill him, this is Bukowski's farewell to his readers. As he said elsewhere of his hero Céline, "they ripped his guts out and he made them laugh". And this is what he proceeds to to in Pulp. Portraying himself as a blundering, idiotic detective, he pokes the ultimate fun at his own work as a writer. He hasn't even begun to solve any of the mysteries of life and yet he is about to die a meaningless death (in the allegory, the lease on his office is expiring), surrounded by even worse clowns and failures than he is. Personifications of his earlier selves are also there (the gambling addict mailman, see Post Office) and he resolutely thrashes them in the most poignant self-critique you'll ever find anywhere. Believe it or not, this book is a sublime act of bravery in the face of insurmountable odds.

I'm slightly hesitant to give this three stars instead of two, but Bukowski is one of my all time favorites so I'll give him a break in case he's reading this from beyond the grave. Pulp is the last of Bukowski's short list of novels (in comparison to how many books he's published). It also happens to be his worst (in my humble opinion) book, period. I must say I appreciate his divergence from his usual, Henry Chinaski autobiographical stuff, but this one falls short. The main character is a private dick who gets involved with the spirit of Celine and a sexy alien in this offbeat story that, as the title suggests, plays with Pulp and Noir style. It's a quick, sort of fun read, but it feels thrown together and published on the merit and fame of its author rather than the quality of the book. Pulp kind of reminds me of a bad novel written by a young writer that doesn't realize his lack of talent. Still, it's a must for any Bukowski fan because of how different it is and because he only has a handful of novels. I'm on my way to finishing everything Buk has ever written and this is just another piece of the fantastic whole. If you've never read Bukowski please don't start with this. It's not fair to him. Check out Women or Post Office. If you're a dedicated fan you'll get a kick out of Pulp but will likely agree that it's more a quirky, fun change and another addition to his lexicon than a great work of fiction. That's the best way I can describe it. You can find a synopsis somewhere else.

I first heard of Charles Bukowski when i was reading a news update on the band Shiner's website and it made me curious. Then i was at a Dismemberment Plan concert and someone in one of the opening acts had a Charles Bukowski T-shirt on. If an author has people wearing T-shirts with his likeness on them he must be good. Right?
Pulp is a funny and vulgar parody of Pulp mystery novels, and revolves around Nick Belane a Private Detective in Hollywood. The book follows his misadventures that include working for Lady Death, a space alien called jeannie nitro, hunting for the famous French author Celine (who is suppose to be dead), looking for a red sparrow, and lots of drinking. In Pulp Bukowski mixes the pulp novel, hopelessness, lonelyness, and extreme vulgarity and somehow makes it funny. His writing style is very character centered and is very dialog oriented. The story and even plot seemed to take a backseat. However Pulp is not for everyone. It's funny, but it's humor is dark, and it is very very vulgar. I can't stress that last part enough. This book is vulgar, so if you get easily offended don't buy it. Otherwise this book is very easy and funny read.

What do you want for a man who has toiled for half a century with words and phrases? Do you want a marching band parade? A shotgun in the mouth? Or how about a novel, a novel that realizes this is the end. "Pulp" does this. It is Buk's goodbye. Fante is in there, John Martin his publisher is there, Lady Death, other characters from his life of writing. You can find him. But, you gotta look carefully. You have to have read Buk before. This is not for first time readers. Dont read this book until you have read alot of Bukowski. Only then will you enjoy it.

Just as the gaping maw that is our culture at large was hard at work trying to define, capture, and devour Bukowski. His final book and final act of rebellion is Pulp.
Surely this book leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of all the people who needed to pin Bukowski down, who thought they had the drunken underworld dweller Bukowski's literary soul dissected on the slab.
They'll try to ignore this book but its here. You cant understand Bukowski without understanding this book so get cracking boys.

I'm surprised this book has not achieved more notoriety in literary circles. Simply put, it's a wonderful and often amusing piece of fiction that is a wonderful read, time and time again. The bare-bones Bukowski style of writing, the booze, the mayhem that Belane stumbles into: it's just great entertainment, laced with the biting dialogue that, for me, is the trademark of his work.

I first picked this up a year ago and didn't like it. I think that's because I'd just read his powerful autobiographical novels Post Office and Ham on Rye and wanted more of the same. Pulp, Bukowski's last novel, was completed shortly before his death in 1994 and is more a work of fantasy--an absurd detective tale written in classic hardboiled private eye style. It's a pageturner, and I'd love to see it turned into a movie. It starts when Lady Death hires private dick Nick Belane to ascertain the identity of someone she thinks is Celine, who has somehow escaped her grasp. Bukowski's Celine is hilarious, a master of the put-down. More clients follow, in the best film noir tradition, but with bizarre and humorous twists. Belane's association with Lady Death proves beneficial a number of times, but it is not without its price. I couldn't put this down and the ending is a gutwrencher. Running gags like Belane's "high" fee ($6 an hour) and his inability to get served in bars without a hassle prove Buk's masterful comic touch, while slice of life digressions take the reader places few writers go. For instance, a space alien laments: "The earth. Smog, murder, the poisoned air, the poisoned water, the poisoned food, the hatred, the hopelessness, everything. The only beautiful thing about the earth is the animals and now they are being killed off, soon they will be gone except for pet rats and race horses. It's so sad, no wonder you drink so much." Dedicated to "bad writing," Pulp is anything but.

Don't expect to find the answers to the world's problems with "Pulp." The book has some funny moments, and should be read by those interested in 'flippant fair,' or at least by those who like to shower in their underwear. Under the pretext of a spoof-detective story, "Pulp" provides us with a glimpse of an isolationist living in a world of disjointed people. In my opinion, the book does reflect a sort of truth that exists in today's American society. Whether you agree with that or not depends on who or where or on what hole you're sniffing. Neophytes stay away.

it seems strange to me that people would respond negatively to this book.being bukowskis last novel, it is particularily poignant, dealing with death in a humorous and personal way.his name may be belane in the novel, but bukowski fans know that this is chinaskis last words, and it is a beautiful book to close a brilliant career

I read this in one setting. Like always, about half way through Bukowski has us hanging our heads and shaking them in amazement. I'm not sure what he left out of this novel, but it wasn't much. Bukowski throws in the kitchen sink and then ties it all together. Bukowski shows us life from the crud under our fingernails to analysing our vomit and on to internal motivations. The whole time he keeps the story line going. Bukowski is really up against the whole world in this one, and then some to include space aliens and the un dead. Luckily for him he's just unsavoury enough that no one really wants him spending eternity with them. In the end Bukowski will have you rooting for the good guy and wishing fatal accidents on his adversaries. Save plenty of hot water because you'll want a bath after this one. -Mike