The Great Bukowski

The Great Bukowski

Thursday, May 11, 2023

So when does a Fine Press specialist start carrying Bukowski?

Why, when she is offered a collection of his first editions, many with his original artwork.

 

A collector contacted me recently, saying he was ready to begin selling his Bukowski collection.  Sigh, I thought to myself.  Poetry?  Sure, I love it – but Bukowski?  The beats?  I was born just late enough to have missed Woodstock and everything associated with it.

But, being a bookseller sometimes means going outside of one’s specialties.  So I agreed to go look at the collection…and was absolutely amazed. 

Out of a very extensive Bukowski collection, I now have about a dozen or more of some of his best work.  Ham on Rye, Post Office, Hot Water Music, You Get So Alone At Times That It Just Makes Sense.

Inevitably, while cataloguing books, I end up reading snippets of the work – bits and pieces, just enough to get a sense of the author.  And I think I’m falling in love with Bukowski…

About a half-dozen of these beauties are on our web site, the rest to follow shortly.

But wait!  There’s more!

In addition to Buk’s work, we also now have an original ink sketch of him, drawn by one of the greatest of the beat artists, R. Crumb, in 1988.  We have traced the provenance of this special piece back to “Red” Stodolski, owner of Baroque Books, in Los Angeles (from 1972 to 1998), and who had a special relationship with Bukowski – presumably, from whom he first acquired this piece.  To our knowledge, this image has never been published, and would be the highlight of any collection of either Buk or Crumb.

Please enjoy browsing this wonderful collection, which can be found on our web site under “Featured Books”.

And remember, the beats go on…