Customer Reviews

War All the Time

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Many fans and critics of Bukowski often bemoan the "watering down" of the quality of his poems versus the quantity after he learned how to use a word processor (myself included), but here was Chinaski at his purest, coming out of the 70's with seemingly more short stories and novels than poems, still so brash and raw that you can practically smell the boozy halitosis blending with the carbon ink.
I ended up haviong to buy a new copy after my 3rd ed. Black Sparrow copy mysteriously vanished over the winter. Although the ECCO editions are nice enough, (hardcovers included), the print seems a little different and the paper feels a bit thinner, but I suppose I might be a little biased as I loved the original printings (plus you'll never see an autograph/drawing on a HarperCollins edition!).
Some really good long poems are included which always makes for great re-reading, but works like "the condition" and "suggestion for an arrangment" will have you whipping off lines from memory, maybe just like Buk did when he wrote them.

Bukowski often wrote that he thought most poetry was dandyfied, prissyfied, pretty, not real, fake, false and worst of all, restrictive to the "masses". To him there were a few exceptions; John Fante, Hamsun and early Hem. in prose, some of Pound, all of Sarayon, all of Jeffers in poetry. Hank wrote clearly and lucidly about many topics, not just getting drunk and sleeping with women as many of his detractors claim. He also wrote clean crisp poetry about LA and the race track, and traffic, other writers and about cats, and food, and taking baths and, well, about life!!!! Life being lived by a human being. War All the Time was written during the early to mid eighties, a time when Hank had had some success with his writing. His movie was out and enjoying some success. He was 60 years old and he had a newer car and a house in San Pedro he owned and a woman he loved (the second Linda) so his words in this collection are not quite as hard as poems from earlier on, like the poems found in the Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame collection. But, War All the Time is still lucid and clear as a drink of vodka on ice, this collection is right up there with the best of Bukowski.

im a big bukowski fan . i didnt love this collection nor did i hate it . i was more indifferent and found myself sometimes reading thru the poems quickly. out of the 5 of his books ive read thus far, this one has the least amount of pages marked with poems to go back and read

Charles Bukowski brilliantly captures the race track experience. His poetry in the "horsemeat" section of "War All The Time"
is an hysterical, decadent, powerful and exciting, tribute to Thoughrobreds and their Fans.
If you can't actually be at the track, Bukowski's poetry will carry you there; from Gate to Wire, his poetry is OUTSTANDING!!!...

This is vintage bukowski; getting drunk and doing stupid stuff....reminds me of me. He dreams he is flying during one of his most enjoyable dreams then wakes up in the L A drunk tank lying next to a toliet while some dude is throwing up. awesome!!!

This book is filled splashes of rawness, with large bursts of reality checks which surely keep you humble and grounded. When reading, "how do they get you number" (p.181), you get the sence of whay hell might be for some one that might be caught in the same predicament that brings you back to a scenario that you might be able to associated with. If you don't read this book it will be your loos. Keep your reading up!

If you have not read bukowski you have not read the truth of perspective.Brace yourself, you will be in for one hell of a ride. I have never seen pain in such a beautiful, stark, and up-front manner as this man was able to communicate. it makes you want to bleed ink.

Get it, read it, dont try to understand it, and read it agian. Thats all in a nut shell. The best poems I read in a long time, Thanks Buk

A charecter picks up a copy of War All the Time and thumbs through it in a fairly conspicuous way about half-way through the movie. The director must be a Buk fan!

Cool!

By the way, this is a great collection of Bukowski's poetry. . .