Nice to find a Bukowski forum that is alive and well. I "found" or "discovered" Buk the long way around, I suppose.....After reading all of Joyce - yeah, even Finnegans Wake - and all of Proust and being a huge fan of classical music - I honestly can't fucking remember HOW I finally stumbled across Buk. The first thing I read was Post Office and I was (and still am) amazed at the clarity, simplicity, brilliance and hilarity of that book. As I continue to go thru all his works and now volume after volume of incredible letters, I continue to be stunned at the genius. Hell, I can barely drive after drinking a tiny percentage of his daily input --- to be able to WRITE is mind-boggling. If you've gotten plotzed and listened to much of the music he refers to - you'll know he's honest and right on the money. What a guy. His stuff should be required reading in schools. Maybe then we'd have better writers...........maybe not.