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Charles Bukowski
by
Barry Miles
A major new biography on an increasingly important American literary icon, by the most acclaimed writer on the Beat Generation, Barry Miles. Miles knew all the key players in the Beat era, including William Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, and also recorded with Bukowski. Having spoken with people close to Bukowski, and with a full examination of Bukowski's extensive writings...more
Hardcover, 314 pages
Published
March 9th 2010
by Virgin Books
(first published July 1st 2005)
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There's no question that the Howard Sounes biography is the best book on Bukowski so far. That said, this book has its pleasures. Unlike Sounes, who engaged in real research, Miles' book is pretty much synthesized out of the autobiographical elements in Bukowski's vast oeuvre. This may not be great scholarship, but the fact that so much of its content comes directly or indirectly from Buk's own words actually leaves the reader with a better sense of what to expect from Buk's writings. If you...more
i enjoyed this book.i think that it would be of interest to not only anyone obviously into bukowski, but also anyone who wants to write,as his prolific-ness and dedication to writing is truelly inspiring.as is his ability to write amongst all the chaos of his life.the only frustrating thing for me was that the author kept saying that 'bukiwski was drinking more than ever'.this phrase was overused and ruined any relativity for me.but gripping,actually.
A not-astounding biography of Charles Bukowski that covered all the bases and told me everything I needed to know, and then some.
Bailed at a little over 100 pages. How somebody can make an outsized personality like Bukowski seem boring is beyond me.
I'm not normally a huge fan of biographies, but I couldn't resist picking up this one. All in all, it was pretty good. I did find it quite a bit different than Cherkovski's, even though the same facts are at the base. I think Miles had an image of Bukowski that he wanted to show and did so. Of course, so did Cherkovski. Most biographers probably do. You probably get a more complete picture by reading different ones and finding the "truth" somewhere in between.
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What a frustrating biography. Barry Miles was relentless in his pursuit of the truth and spent most of his time picking out the half-truths in Bukowski's writings. While I applaud his dedication in research, he let his own voice speak too much, not content to just narrate. That voice seemed dour and humorless. Of course I learned a lot about Charles Bukowski, but found myself wanting to chuck (haha) the book across the room half a dozen times.
A biography of writer Charles Bukowski. His life, like his writing, was a vast waste of tedium punctuated occasionally by something interesting. I was especially struck that, for a poet as populist as he was, he hated to do public readings of his work.
Some cool new insights, but nothing overwhelmingly different than any other biography of Bukowski. I learned more about his relationship with his first wife, and got a glimpse of what she looked like, which no other book really has.
Best Buk bio I have ever read. No fan worshiping and anectdotes I have never heard. Miles slides back the curtains of bravado and gently has us look at the knot of a man Buk was.
Great supplement to Bukowski: Born Into This documentary. Bukowski is a favorite of mine and this was a well written bio of him.
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Author of several books and biographies, most pertaining to musicians and the sixties.
Miles has written biographies of Paul McCartney, The Beatles, William Burroughs, Jack Kerouac, Frank Zappa, Charles Bukowski and Allen Ginsberg, in addition to books on John Lennon, The Beatles and The Clash.
He is occasionally inaccurately credited as "Miles Mabbett" due to his...more
More about Barry Miles...
Miles has written biographies of Paul McCartney, The Beatles, William Burroughs, Jack Kerouac, Frank Zappa, Charles Bukowski and Allen Ginsberg, in addition to books on John Lennon, The Beatles and The Clash.
He is occasionally inaccurately credited as "Miles Mabbett" due to his...more
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