Hi friends (1 Viewer)

[holocene]

i found this forum on accident while trying to find out how barbara frye died. do you guys accept people here that haven't read much of Bukowski's work yet? i've read some poems by him and picked up love is a dog from hell at the library. i really like the style of the poems, and am looking forward to reading more of his works. is there a specific book or collection you wise people would recommend to me?

 

[Purple Stickpin]

Hey, you're more than welcome here. Buk may have considered poetry to be his main pursuit, but he also produced some very good (and funny) novels. His short stories tend to be the most fanciful (and sometimes brutal) of his output. There used to be a ratings poll of all his major releases on this website, but I don't see it any more. I'll toss out some recommendations on all three types of books here (but frankly, there is material of value in all of his books; well, you might want to avoid the posthumous poetry releases on Black Sparrow/ecco due to some questionable editing that's been a thorn in our sides for some time - some more recent releases edited by Abel Debritto stick to his original writing):

Poetry: Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame; The Last Night of the Earth Poems; The Days Run Away Like Wild Horses Over the Hills (and Love is a Dog From Hell is up there as well)
Novels: Factotum; Post Office; Women
Short Stories: South of No North

 

[Rekrab]

Welcome, holocene. I'm curious, if you don't mind sharing, about your interest in Barbara Frye. I second everything Purple Stickpin said about recommended Bukowski books. I would add to those his novel Post Office.

 

[holocene]

Thanks for your replies. I'm glad to hear his novels are good, and I'll definitely look into those. I read novels way more than poetry, but I'm trying to expand my horizons a little. I'm a slow writer, but I could post some of my thoughts and questions regarding especially poems here.
Anyhow, after picking up Love is a Dog From Hell, I skimmed through Bukowski's wikipedia page. A line about Barbara Frye piqued my interest in particular. The page states that according to a journalist she died "under mysterious circumstances". There doesn't seem to be that much reliable information online concerning her life. After some searching I ended up on this forum. I still don't have an answer but now I'm here more for the discussion and poems....
I'm glad I made an account here. This place feels a little more exclusive and seems to be less full of trolls than, say,, literature subreddits or something.

 

[Rekrab]

This is a good place. There's not enough traffic here these days to interest trolls. Just hardcore fans and scholars.

 

[zobraks]

And people sporting rotating avatars.

 

[Pogue Mahone Athbheoim]

Welcome!

 

[Father Luke]

@holocene

Checkout this thread.