Ham on Rye

Rating:
Summary: Think you've read 'em all? Read ANY Bukowski book!
Review: I plow through Bukowski like I do Cap'n'Crunch. The man inspires drunken poetry on hot summer nights- while talking about women, booze, masturbation, classical music, & horse racing. This book is my new favorite. Why? Because while facinating the reader with lurid tales of a painful and depressing childhood, Bukowski makes us laugh, cry, and feel sorry for that kid we made fun of in 7th grade. We relive our adolecence through the eyes of an outcast in a way that no other writer could prepare us for. I only wish I could tell the man thank you for taking the time to put his thoughts onto paper. (But he's not the type who would have received it well.)

Rating:
Summary: Buk's Tough Early Life
Review:
This book is just great. It may in fact be his most readable novel. And it recounts his early years -- being the "prequil" to the life and experiences he would recount in his other novels and poetry as an adult. It's interesting to read Buk's second novel Factotum, directly after this; we find out what misery is waiting for him as a menial laborer -- and as a unknown writer collecting rejection slips -- around the country. What I noticed about Ham on Rye however is that it may be darker than say Post Office and Women, two other books by Buk I found to be a lot funnier. The reason of course is that Ham On Rye recounts his years as a abused child (his father beats him weekly, mercilessly) and as an unfortunate victim of "acne vulgaris," a severe form of acne that in effect deformed him for life, and which produced golf ball size boils all over his face neck and back -- to the point where he is even pointed out by screaming children as a monster (think of Quasimodo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame). Anyway, pick this tale about one of the great survivors of American non-mainsteam lit. Also recommended is Women by Buk and The Losers Club by Richard Perez -- a Buk influenced little book about another "unlucky writer."


Rating:
Summary: Because I Lost my House Key
Review: Charles Bukowski has lived harder than you. Or anyone you know. This book desribes his early life in a thinly veiled autobiography.

You can't have a better introduction to Bukowski's writing. By reading this book, you'll get an introduction to the hilarious irony of his day-to-day situations, the piercing sadness of his struggle, and the amazing strength he shows in everything he does.

This book isn't for the half-hearted or the meek. Anyone who's ever tried harder only to have their lot get worse can understand what's happening here. Don't be judgemental; Bukowski really is just a drunk with a typewriter, but he writes better than any high school composition teacher.

Rating:
Summary: Bukowski: yet to receive the accolades he deserves
Review: Why some other books which we are forced to read in school are considered "far superior" to this one is above me. Bukowski's sort of autobiographical book "Ham on Rye" is nothing short of spectacular and holds up amazingly well over time. The reviewer who mentioned that some coming-of-age stories lose their appeal when the reader reaches adulthood couldn't have said it better in my opinion. "Ham on Rye" is just as effective when you're 17 as it does when you're 35.....

This is an important literary book, regardless of what many literary critics....ahem, hacks....say. Bukowski has many fans and this book is one of the many reasons why. If you have not read "Ham on Rye" yet, I suggest you do so, and for a more modern coming-of-age story that reminded me of this, check out "Little New York Ba$tard." Both books leave a lasting impression.

Rating:
Summary: Up Through the Darkness!
Review:
HAM ON RYE is the semi-autobiographical story of Charles Bukowski and his unhappy childhood. It's written in a very easy-to-digest style using simple language and may be his easiest-to-read book. It details his relationship with his abusive, hard-ass dad, his skin condition that made him feel like a freak and an outsider, his problems at school, his resistance to non-conformity. It's the story of a survivor, a loser who would never lose by giving up! It's a very moving, sad, engaging story -- one I recommend to all writers and "outsiders" alike. Through the darkness, Bukowski's humor shines through, his determination not to live by anyone else's rules -- to be his own man. Be honest now, isn't that why we love him?! This is a great book, the flipside of the "American Dream" sell-out. I also thank the reviewer who suggested the other Amazon quick-pick, THE LOSERS' CLUB by Richard Perez, much in the vein of Bukowski.

Rating:
Summary: Human, Funny, Brutal
Review: This is Bukowski's masterpiece. It is vulgar, sad, funny, and compassionate. Not many writers can write a book like this. He does not exploit his terrible upbringing or less than "respectable" views on life (as he sometimes does in other books) but rather turns these facts into good literature. It's like punk rock on paper. The way he sees through the ridiculously fake nature of much of American life is truly inspirational. And his prose is, as usual, excellent.

Rating:
Summary: An excellent semi-autobiography
Review: Depending upon your taste in literature, Charles Bukowski was either a brilliant writer who has yet to receive to respect he truly deserves or nothing more than a drunk with a typewriter. Most of those who love Bukowski seem to have discovered him through his poetry, but Ham on Rye was my introduction to the author, and it remains my favorite work of his. In fact, I think Ham on Rye is probably the best coming-of-age story in American literature, far superior to Catcher in the Rye. Although Salinger's novel captures your attention when you're thirteen, it tends to suffer terribly when you reflect back on it as a more mature individual and recognize the narcissicism and insincerity at the heart of Holden Caulfield's attitude towards the world. Ham on Rye does not romanticize the innocence of children and depict adults as "phonies." It is Bukowski's own thinly veiled account of his childhood and adolescence in Los Angeles between the two world wars, as told through the eyes of his alter ego, Henry Chinaski. Ham on Rye shares the same brutal humor and breezy prose style as Post Office and Women, but it is much more tightly focused than any of Bukowski's prior novels, which tended to be more episodic than anything else. For that reason I think it ultimately achieves a sort of lasting resonance with the reader that is lacking in much of Bukowski's other prose work, for all of the energy and spontaneity his writing always possessed. Ham on Rye is alternatively hilarious and horrifying, but it always remains truthful in a way that few coming-of-age novels are. Anyone new to Charles Bukowski should start with this.

Rating:
Summary: Buk's Tough Early Life
Review: This book is just great. It may in fact be his most readable novel. And it recounts his early years -- being the "prequil" to the life and experiences he would recount in his other novels and poetry as an adult. It's interesting to read Buk's second novel Factotum, directly after this; we find out what misery is waiting for him as a menial laborer -- and as a unknown writer collecting rejection slips -- around the country. What I noticed about Ham on Rye however is that it may be darker than say Post Office and Women, two other books by Buk I found to be a lot funnier. The reason of course is that Ham On Rye recounts his years as a abused child (his father beats him weekly, mercilessly) and as an unfortunate victim of "acne vulgaris," a severe form of acne that in effect deformed him for life, and which produced golf ball size boils all over his face neck and back -- to the point where he is even pointed out by screaming children as a monster (think of Quasimodo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame). Anyway, pick this tale about one of the great survivors of American non-mainsteam lit. Also recommended is Women by Buk and The Losers Club by Richard Perez -- a Buk influenced little book about another "unlucky writer."

Rating:
Summary: Quality work by the lovable drunk
Review: Dark humor abound here. Quick, easy read. Bukowski takes the reader back to his early childhood, leading up through his teenage years just before the onset of World War II. Highly recommended.