... They were typical Bukowski prose with more graphic sex scenes added in.
Definitely true.
The only problem, I have with 'em is:
since most people learn about Bukowski through
these stories (at least in Germany), most of the readers tend to
reduce him to 'sex&booze'.
But He is writing about sex and booze like about eating, breathing or having a flat tire - absolutely normal: it's part of everydaylife so it's part of his writing.
That's what these people do not see. And since this part of his writing is not
SO MUCH in the foreground in 'Post Office' or especially not in 'Ham on Rye' I usually try to get people into Bukowski through these.
"Animal Crackers in My Soup."
Great story!
This one especially has that mix of sex
And social criticism; humor, satire
and seriousness.
... For instance, [...] the one with a man raping a little girl ...
This is, as I understand it, one of the
LEAST stories, made up for men's interest. It has absolutely Nothing glorifying about the situation and is sheer horror as he expresses it.
I think, the main sentence to understand this story is:
"Martin's eyes looked into her eyes and it was a communication between two hells - one her's, the other his."
*snip* The material he was submitting to the LA Free Press, NOLA, and Open City was really not that different from the stories he began to send to Adam, Pix, Hustler, etc. although I think he probably exaggerated *snip*
interesting.
shows how
mjp was right (see quote far above).
still I ain't sure about some of the stories, that
invite to reduce the author to 'sex&booze'.
maybe it's good, he had these stories. They may lead people to him who'd Never read anything anyway. Especially young people. (being so
anti-establishment etc.)
dunno.