Women: A Novel by Charles Bukowski Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Women: A Novel
Book Review: The Real Hank Moody
Summary: 4 Stars
On "Californication," the Showtime series based on Bukowski's alter ego Henry Chinaski and the litany of experiences recounted in "Women," David Duchovny plays Hank Moody. Hank is an L.A. based writer with a daughter, a difficult relationship with the girl's mother, and an endless succession of affairs with admirers, colleagues, and friends, often fueled as a result of alcohol and/or drug binges. Hank Chinaski also has a daughter, a difficult relationship with the girl's mother, an endless succession of affairs, and a taste for drugs and booze. The difference between Chinaski and Moody lies in Showtime's careful manipulation. Duchovny has the resources to make Hank handsome, charming, witty, and sympathetic even in his most careless moments. He lives well, in a beautiful bungalow in Venice, and maintains a passionate love for his daughter's mother which the viewer expects will ultimately lead him to his salvation.
Bukowski's Hank has the wit, but the comparison pretty much ends there. He is ugly, lives in small and squalid apartments, and is not averse to misogyny. In the midst of an affair with a belly dancer from Vancouver, he asserts his fondness for "Canadian bacon." Some sex scenes bear closer to resemblance to rape scenes. There is never a moment of a pause in these scenarios, never a sense of wrongness.
Bukowski's character is revolting and, in his depictions of his pustule-ridden skin, the greasy floors of his apartment, and his unrepentant addiction to sex with any and every woman who crosses his path, he expects our disgust. Unlike other reviewers, I found Chinaski's steady access to so many women quite implausible. Halfway through, the catalogue began to bore me, and most of the women bore little identity beyond their body parts.
He approaches some for the first time and, within minutes, they are in bed. He has little time for seduction or courting and most of these women seem grateful for the opportunity to lie with a poet. His tastes are varied: streetwalkers, professionals living in the Hollywood Hills, dilettantes, unstable pill freaks, and numerous nubile admirers. Only a few women are truly memorable. The first is Lydia Vance, a sculptor and aspiring poet who inspires love and fear in Chinaski due to her passion and, often times, uncontrollable rage and jealousy. Vance is based on Bukowski's true life romance with sculptor and aspiring poet Linda King who later described her affair with Bukowski as a "prolonged nervous breakdown."
There is Tammy, a pillhead with bipolar tendencies. There is the remote Laura, whom Chinaski calls "Katharine" due to her resemblance to Katharine Hepburn. And there is Sara, the owner of an organic restaurant whose grace and dedication finally force Chinaski to question his behavior.
What saves this novel, which could easily be characterized as self-indulgent, misogynistic, hostile, and rather proud of itself for having these qualities, is its lucidity about the ways in which we distract ourselves in an effort to avoid wondering what meaning our lives bear. At one point, Chinaski confronts that his drinking, womanizing, and writing are simply activities to occupy his time while he waits to die.
Bukowski's style is straightforward, sometimes even brusque. His dialogue is a treat, giving a true sense of hearing how people communicate and, often, cross wires. There is some redundancy, which one might chalk up to poor editing or unawareness but that is, of course, not the case. Instead, this motif assists the tone of the novel, in which little changes and never is there a promise that the narrator has learned anything about himself or anyone else.
Bukowski avoids the flourishes of his contemporaries and mentions some by name in "Women," often contributing a taste for their novels to those within a certain class and of a temperament which are anathema to him.
I liked the novel because it is honest, though I detest many of the things it is honest about. I like it because it never pretends to be anything more than it is: an account of a man who finally has it good and intends to enjoy it, for he has nothing to lose except life itself.
Book Review: The most engaging novel I've read in a while...
Summary: 5 Stars
I've read many, many books over the past few years. Women, by Bukowski, is perhaps the most engaging. I'm not going to say the best, as I've dabbled in some of the "great books," but it drew me in, and as far as fiction's concerned, it's a winner. I'm a relatively slow reader, and I sat down and finished the entire thing in one sitting. It's coarse, and it's profane, sexist, and a number of other "-ists," but highly recommended nevertheless.Book Review: True Bukowski.
Summary: 5 Stars
I absolutely loved this volume of Bukowski's works. Not only was he an integral writer for his time, but he gave an insight into lifestyles that many in society/literature wanted to pretend didn't exist. His writing is raw, emotional, and upfront. He holds no punches in this book filled with not only what you would expect from Bukowski, but also a level of tenderness and vulnerability that surprises a lot of readers. While his texts may not be for everyone, I find myself engrossed and never disappointed by his brutal honesty and clever wit.Book Review: Women
Summary: 5 Stars
This is such a great book, it was very intriguing. It is very straight forward in his encounters with women and goes hand in ahnd with his title of "dirty old man" but it is very humorous. I recommend it to everyone unless your offended by vulgarity or sexual references.Book Review: Women
Summary: 5 Stars
Truly a masterpiece and definitely one of my favorites from Bukowski. Very exciting and refreshing read that will provide you with a glimpse into the world of an addict writer and his encounters with women.