Essential Bukowski: Poetry (4 Viewers)

I always wondered what Bukowski poems would sound like if they were read by a guy who also does voices for direct-to-DVD cartoons, talking sex dolls and English language AXE Body Spray commercials that run on local TV stations in the Philippines. Now I know. Unfortunately.

To cleanse your palate of that soulless noise, feel free to peruse links to more than 250 recordings made by the poet himself.

And make sure to come back in a few days when we'll be giving away 10 copies of Essential Bukowski with the lovely UK cover to lucky readers in the UK and Ireland, courtesy of 4th Estate in the UK.

The fun never stops at the fun factory.
 
Here's the (long-awaited) list of poems:

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That must be from the Kindle edition? Neither print version has a table of contents.

Book will be added to the database some time today. Here it is.

I haven't used Abel's source notes to update the individual poem dates for most of those yet.
 
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It looks like Amazon.com have a hardcover version, but Amazon.co.uk only have a softcover version. That's weird.
 
Allegedly* you can buy a hardback copy at TBD for 24,75 €.

* I say "allegedly" because whenever I ordered a hardcover copy** there they've sent me a paperback one (for the price of a hardback copy :mad:).
** Only once, to tell the truth.
 
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Thanks, zobraks! Unfortunately, TBD charges €29.25 inc. shipping when I follow your link. It's no doubt because TBD adds 25% VAT on behalf of the Danish state, just like English Amazon does. Everything here is sold with an added 25% VAT, inc. books.
I just ordered a copy from TBD. Now I just pray they´ll send me the American hardcover they show on their website. :)
 
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If so, I´ll have to complain since it says hardcover and shows a photo of the American hardcover version. I better keep both my fingers and my toes crossed. :p
 
Are Flophouse and The Soldier, His Wife and the Bum the versions from 'The Last Night of the Earth Poems'?

Both poems differ from their appearances in WR, the latter even has a slightly different title: The Soldier, The Wife and the Bum.
 
I don't know about the quality. The paper inside seems nice enough. But the casewrap on the hardcover is plain paper, it isn't coated (like a textbook). So the copy I have here had white (rubbed) corners when I took it out of the shipping box. Don't know if I've ever seen that before on a commercial book, but I doubt it matters much for this title. I don't see it selling for a premium 20 years from now.
 
Has anyone compared The Laughing Heart in this book to the version in Betting on the Muse or the 1996 New Years Greeting?
 
I just got my copy during lunch today. The corner was dinged a tiny bit as if the person taking it out of a box dropped it. Otherwise, in great condition. Thank you Abel.
 
What do you call the form of binding they´ve used on the "Essential Bukowski" hardcover version?
It's not your usual hardcover binding because here the pages are attached to the spine, which makes it impossible to leave the book open on a table. With a "normal" hardcover binding there's free space between the page block and the spine, but that's not the case with "Essential Bukowski".
 
Bukfan,
I Don't have the book but it sounds like a perfect bound hardcover. Not as nice as sewn. As a rule, most trade paperbacks are perfect bound and most hardcovers sewn? Have they stopped sewing trade hc books?
 
I hope you didn't receive a 2nd hand one, PhillyDave?
No. The store, Joseph Fox Books, is an excellent independent place for brand new books here in Center City. I don't usually buy brand new but when I do I try to make it over there. The lovely young lady behind the counter reported that it has been flying off the shelves so I explained to her why that might be, besides the fact that Buk is one of the, if not THE, best poets ever. Unedited, straight from the manuscripts and some of his best material. Helping make up for the Martinized period.
 
Bukfan,
I Don't have the book but it sounds like a perfect bound hardcover. Not as nice as sewn. As a rule, most trade paperbacks are perfect bound and most hardcovers sewn? Have they stopped sewing trade hc books?

All I know is that it's not your traditional hardcover where there's space between the paper block and the spine when you open it up and look down the inside of the spine. I have´nt seen a Bukowski hardcover book made like this before with the paper block glued to the spine making it impossible to leave the book open on a table same as with a softcover.

It is sewn in signatures, it's just very tight.

You might be able to loosen it up:

Thanks, mjp! I´ll try that.
 
Great review, thanks a lot.

The only significant aspect of Bukowski missing here is the poet as father;
For some reason, the UK version has 92 poems and the US version that I put together, 95. For the UK edition, they discarded 3 poems and they didn't even tell me about it. The poems that were removed are "love poem to Marina", "cornered" and "do you want to enter the arena?" (aka "So you wanna be a writer?"). Un-fucking-believable.
 
For some reason, the UK version has 92 poems and the US version that I put together, 95. For the UK edition, they discarded 3 poems and they didn't even tell me about it. The poems that were removed are "love poem to Marina", "cornered" and "do you want to enter the arena?" (aka "So you wanna be a writer?"). Un-fucking-believable.

Yikes! Didn't realise that. I will add a note to the end of my review to that effect. I did think it was odd how Buk's love for Marina was covered in the recent compilation but not mentioned here. Notwithstanding, a really great collection, even if the American collection is even greater.

Actually, Abel, are you making "making America great again"? I think we should be told....
 
Actually, the omission is especially weird as the British edition has 8 blank pages at the end. Write your poems here, I guess? Doodling space? You have a chance to finish the book yourself in an interactive publishing venture. Nice.

Additionally, it seems at least "cornered" is listed in the bibliography at the end so I don't how 4th Estate managed that.
 
They changed the number in the intro as well. The UK version says 92 poems are included. Not 95.
 

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