Bukowski in Pictures: A Pictorial Biography [Paperback]

Bukowski in Pictures is the first pictorial biography of Charles Bukowski, legendary author of classic books such as Post Office, Ham on Rye and Notes of a Dirty Old Man, and the subject of the Hollywood movie Barfly. Bukowski's picaresque life - as driven writer, heavy drinker, Hollywood celebrity, family man and unlikely Don Juan - is illustrated with approximately two hundred photographs, many of which are published here for the first time. Friends, family and lovers have contributed candid photographs, and there are powerful new portraits by leading photographers. Extracts from personal letters and rare documents offer new insights that delve behind the public persona. The end result is a fascinating life in pictures that is essential for all Bukowski fans.

Charles Bukowski is a legend in modern literature. A heavy-drinking postal clerk from Los Angeles, California, he rose from obscurity to international acclaim as the author of more than forty-five books of poetry and prose that document, with unerring honesty and wit, the underbelly of America. Post Office, Notes of a Dirty Old Man and Ham on Rye are among his most famous works. He also wrote the screenplay for Barfly, a movie based on his life.

It was a picaresque life that began in Germany in 1920, and ended in Calfornia in 1994. His childhood was desperately unhappy. As a young man he lived as an itinerant drunk, and he worked manual jobs until becoming a full-time writer at the age of forty-nine. In his remaining years, Bukowski emerged as one of the most successful and innovative writers of his day.

Bukowski in Pictures is the first pictorial biography of Bukowski, telling the story of his life with approximately two hundred photographs, both colour and black and white, most of which are published here for the first time. Friends of Bukowski, members of his family, and former lovers have contributed candid photographs. There are powerful new portraits by leading photographers such as Gottfried Helnwein, former Rolling Stone art director Tony Lane, and Andy Warhol's former assistant, Gerard Malanga. Artists Dave Greiser and R.Crumb have provided illustrations. Extracts from personal letters and rare documents, including Bukowski's recently declassified FBI file, offer new insights that delve behind the public personae.

Biographer Howard Sounes - author of Charles Bukowski: Locked In The Arms of a Crazy Life - has edited and introduced Bukowski in Pictures, weaving new research and quotations from Bukowski's work into introductory essays and extensive photo captions. The resulting book is an extraordinary visual document that will fascinate and delight Bukowski fans the world over. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Howard Sounes is also the author of Fred and Rose and Down the Highway, a biography of Bob Dylan. He lives in London.