so a question about doubles in some books.. (1 Viewer)

[whiskeyandwater]

If you read the book Notes of a Dirty Old Man one of the memos in the book is a part of Women.
I'm confused as to why that is.
The part of the book where he is having sex with the girl and the flower pots are falling down when he is shaking the room. THey get a dog, and she kicks it with her pointy toed shoes.

Ya knowwww.
come on you know.

 

[hank solo]

You'll find that happens sometimes, scenes used in old columns reused in later stories. Factotum is perhaps the most episodic of the novels. I suppose if the tale belonged to that period of his life he'd use it even if he'd used it before, and not worry about people saying "huh? that's familiar..."

 

[Purple Stickpin]

The story of Wilbur Oxnard and the Emperor of San Francisco gets told at least twice. I used to be mildly annoyed at these repetitions, but then again, Buk was so prolific, he can be forgiven these minor "indiscretions," no?

 

[mjp]

I think he correctly assumed most of the readers of the books would not have read his columns in a Los Angeles weekly paper. Just like most of them wouldn't have read the small circulation lit mags that all the poems originally appeared in. It only becomes repetitious in hindsight, when we have access to all these things.

 

[roni]

[...] a part of Women.[...] the flower pots are falling down when he is shaking the room. THey get a dog, and she kicks it with her pointy toed shoes.

as far as I remember, that's from Post-Office not Women.

But yeah, you're right. Buk used several anecdotes a couple of times. That's what authors do, who don't write 'entire fiction' but 'autobiographic fiction'.

The poems are even more repeating. He wrote about what moved him.


"It is one of his favorite stories," said Sarah. "I love him, but you have no idea how many times I've had to listen to that story." - "I love you too, Sarah," I said, "but somehow, the telling of old stories, again and again, seems to bring them closer to what they were supposed to be."
(Hollywood, chapter 6)

 

[Bukfan]

The part of the book where he is having sex with the girl and the flower pots are falling down when he is shaking the room.

The sex/flower pot scene is in the novel Post Office...

 

[whiskeyandwater]

Ah my mistake.
I was debating in my head which one of those two it was from.
I went with Women clearly.