What other writers have you read because Bukowski told you so? (2 Viewers)

[David]

Fascinating thread. Just spent an hour reading the whole thing! One writer not mentioned is William Saroyan. Buk loved his early work and if you go back to the Saroyan play and look at the scene in the San Francisco bar with Joe and Mary and then compare the "Barfly" scene between Wanda and Hank (forget the character's name!), you'll see the connection. Buk wrote lots of poems which refer to Saroyan.



Forgot to say the Saroyan play "The Time of Your Life." Also, Saroyan loved LONG titles for his works, like Buk, and there's also a gentle, whimsical side in Buk which connects to Saroyan (and Thurber). And finally, Saroyan influenced Kerouac and Buk loved the loose, casual, rapid, direct and poetic style of S's early short stories.

 

[Johannes]

I read Saroyan recently, for the first time in my life and he sure is an interesting writer. Strange style somehow, simple and funny in a way that makes you quietly laugh inside. I have never read short stories written that way. For sure.

It's not breathtaking genius to me, but I like the easiness and the flow. I remember B. writing that he took a part of the style but decided that the content was candyass. I didn't find it candyass, but just read a small volume of stories called "Dear Baby". Maybe his other work is, or parts of it.

I can't understand why he is practically unknown in Europe. He should be up there, as some sort of name at least. Strange.

 

[MeNoHary]

I read John Fante's Ask the Dust because Buk told me to. That book was very good, as promised.

 

[CRBSMILE]

I have that book in my 'to read' stack, I think I may give it a go this weekend. CRB

 

[jmoshea]

I went back two years to beginning of this thread with the intention of reading through all of the posts that concerned what I consider to be the absolute greatest book that Buk helped guide me to read, but then I realized that all I wanted to say was that Journey to the End of the Night by Celine is the greatest book that Buk ever helped guide me to read.

 

[Ambreen]

Lazy Fuck:

In his work Bukowski also mentions a pile of writers. Tshehov, Hemingway, McCullers...

But everyone who has a passion for Buk knows these things and these main writers he 'approved'. More interesting would be to discuss and expand the Canon.

I'll start of with Alan Moore's anarchist graphic novels. Moore writes, quite frankly, about being alone in the sick society. And that's pretty much how one could summarize Bukowski's writing.

So, please help me expand my horizon!

There's a French writer Bukowski never quoted (most probably because he didn't know him) whose work contains bukowskian elements: Louis Calaferte (1928-1994). Like Bukowski, he was an outsider who remained away from the literary circles; and he expressed his angers and indignations in a very direct, violent and crude style comparable to Buk's. I think the book in which their likeness is the most evident is Requiem des innocents. I'm convinced that Buk would have liked him as he liked Jean Genet.

 

[gregormilligan]

Celine, Fante, Hemmingway. I love all three. Although admittedly I read Hemmingway prior to reading any Buk and revisited his books later. :)