D*mn Good Summary
August 13, 2023
Welcome to D*mn Good Summary, a weekly publication (posted each Sunday) covering the more interesting things I came across over the past seven days. From books and philosophical treatises to movies and music, this Sunday summary is an informal amalgam of the thoughts I had and the things I did throughout the week.
This week’s reading: Bukowski, Bukowski, Bukowski
Like any self-respecting teenager, I came across Charles Bukowski’s poetry during a severe bout of stick-it-to-the-man-neosis, when everything and everyone seemed unreasonably oppressive and sadistically tyrannical to me. I hated school, I hated what would follow, I hated myself, and I hated the world. Bukowski’s prose offered a fresh perspective; at a time when I felt most out of place, his poetry became my solace and served as a bright light in a deep dark tunnel. Despite my instant admiration for the emotions that Bukowski was able to capture in verse, I never explored his work beyond that. It wasn’t until a few weeks ago, when visiting a dear friend and browsing through a couple of bookstores with him, that I finally decided to delve into Bukowski's novels.
I started my Buk literary journey with Pulp. This was a bit of an unorthodox approach given that it was the last book he ever published. Written with the knowledge that was he dying, and perhaps somewhat influenced by Lady Death herself, Bukowski infused Pulp with his traditionally irreverent, raunchy, and at times poignant prose. The book reads as a mockery of the Pulp fiction genre as a whole, while at the same time offering an intimate, semi-autobiographical account of a man coming to terms with his life's trajectory. Pulp has some of the most hilarious dialogue I have ever come across in a novel, while at the same time managing to capture life's absurdity in the most brilliant ways. Case in point, this is Nick Belane's—the novel's protagonist's—internal dialogue while in the waiting room of a psychiatrist's office, sitting tight with a bunch of other curious folks:
"We waited and waited. All of us. Didn't the shrink know that waiting was one of the things that drove people crazy? People waited all their lives. They waited to live, they waited to die. They waited in line to buy toilet paper. They waited in line for money. And if they didn't have any money they waited in longer lines. You waited to go to sleep and then you waited to awaken. You waited to get married and you waited to get divorced. You waited for it to rain, you waited for it to stop. You waited to eat and then you waited to eat again. You waited in a shrink's office with a bunch of psychos and you wondered if you were one."
Bukowski's writing is not for everyone, that much I can attest to. You either love it or you hate it, but the one thing you can't do is ignore it.
Once I was done with Pulp, I immediately purchased Post Office, the first novel he ever published. I finished it a couple days ago and then immediately went and bought Factotum and Women. There is quite a lot to unpack there, so lest I do it any injustice, I am going to save my impressions for a more expansive future post/review. This would also make an interesting YouTube video, now that I think of it. Perhaps something I ought to experiment with that in the near future…
Movie of the week: The Straight Story
Yet another masterpiece that warrants its own post and an in-depth review. What people consider David Lynch’s most straightforward movie, and what he has dubbed his most experimental film, The Straight Story is a simple, endearing, and powerful retelling of the real-life story of Alvin Straight, who at the age of 73—while suffering from diabetes and emphysema, among other things—traveled 240 miles (390km for my non-American friends) on his 1966 John Deere lawnmower from Laurens, Iowa to Blue River, Wisconsin to visit his ailing brother. With a screenplay that feels like it was written by Ernest Hemingway himself and Lynch’s sagacious directing, this one’s a must-watch.
Coming up next week…
I have been on a Bruce Springsteen kick as of late, developing a deeper appreciation for the man they call “The Boss” with each album of his that I listen to. This coming week I will be listening to a lesser known, at least to the general public and the more casual Springsteen listener, album of his called Nebraska. Stay tuned for my impressions.
Other than that, I am currently working on the next installment of the How Not to Live and Unfulfilled Life series, this time drawing inspiration from the best show of all time: The Sopranos. You can disagree with the “best show of all time” designation, but know that you’d be entirely wrong.