“Wordsworth,Whitman,WilliamCarlosWilliams,andtheBeatsintheirrespectivegenerationsmovedpoetrytowardamorenaturallanguage.Bukowskimoveditalittlefarther.“-LosAngelesTimesBookReviewInwhatiswidelyhailedasthebestofhismanynovels,CharlesBukowskidetailsthelong,lonelyyearsofhisownhardscrabbleyouthintherawvoiceofalteregoHenryChinaski.FromaharrowinglycheerlesschildhoodinGermanythroughacne-riddledhighschoolyearsandhisadolescentdiscoveriesofalcohol,woman,andtheLosAngelesPublicLibrary’scollectionofD.H.Lawrence,HamonRyeoffersacrude,brutal,andsavagelyfunnyportraitofanoutcast’scoming-of-ageduringthedesperatedaysoftheGreatDepression.