Zelanator reviewed Love is a Dog from Hell by Charles Bukowski
Review of 'Love is a Dog from Hell' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Bukowski feels a little overhyped. I might be lambasted for that observation. Whatever. There were some enlightening poems within this collection and certainly many that resonated. For the most part though I grew weary of the constant refrains of “shit,” “vomit,” “roaches,” etc. I understand that Bukowski captured a certain aesthetic of the urban underworld during his period — but perhaps the most self-aware poem that he wrote (perhaps poking fun at himself) included a stanza that I will paraphrase as “the more poems you write the more they sound like each other and the less they sound like you.”
One aspect of his poetic style that I did appreciate was its fast-paced, conversational flow. This is mostly an exercise in free verse / blank verse with little emphasis on metered lines or rhyme. But he executes a very staccato voice that, in my opinion, captures the hurried environment of …
Bukowski feels a little overhyped. I might be lambasted for that observation. Whatever. There were some enlightening poems within this collection and certainly many that resonated. For the most part though I grew weary of the constant refrains of “shit,” “vomit,” “roaches,” etc. I understand that Bukowski captured a certain aesthetic of the urban underworld during his period — but perhaps the most self-aware poem that he wrote (perhaps poking fun at himself) included a stanza that I will paraphrase as “the more poems you write the more they sound like each other and the less they sound like you.”
One aspect of his poetic style that I did appreciate was its fast-paced, conversational flow. This is mostly an exercise in free verse / blank verse with little emphasis on metered lines or rhyme. But he executes a very staccato voice that, in my opinion, captures the hurried environment of an inner city in California.
3/5
