{"product_id":"0061228443-the_pleasures_of_the_damned_poems-1951-1993","title":"The Pleasures of the Damned: Poems, 1951-1993","description":"\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo his legions of fans, Charles Bukowski was—and remains—the quintessential counterculture icon. A hard-drinking wild man of literature and a stubborn outsider to the poetry world, he wrote unflinchingly about booze, work, and women, in raw, street-tough poems whose truth has struck a chord with generations of readers. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEdited by John Martin, the legendary publisher of Black Sparrow Press and a close friend of Bukowski's, \u003ci\u003eThe Pleasures of the Damned\u003c\/i\u003e is a selection of the best works from Bukowski's long poetic career, including the last of his never-before-collected poems. Celebrating the full range of the poet's extra-ordinary and surprising sensibility, and his uncompromising linguistic brilliance, these poems cover a rich lifetime of experiences and speak to Bukowski's \"immense intelligence, the caring heart that saw through the sham of our pretenses and had pity on our human condition\" (\u003ci\u003eThe New York Quarterly\u003c\/i\u003e). \u003ci\u003eThe Pleasures of the Damned\u003c\/i\u003e is an astonishing poetic treasure trove, essential reading for both longtime fans and those just discovering this unique and legendary American voice.\u003c\/p\u003e\nThe New York Times - Jim Harrison\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Pleasures of the Damned\u003c\/i\u003e is an appropriately long collection because it is likely to stand as the definitive volume of Bukowski's poems. It is well edited by John Martin, the publisher of the estimable Black Sparrow Press, who was Bukowski's editor for most of his working life…I am not inclined to make elaborate claims for Bukowski, because there is no one to compare him to, plus or minus. He wrote in the language of his class as surely as Wallace Stevens wrote in the language of his own. This book offers you a fair chance to make up your own mind on this quarrelsome monster. It is ironical that those who man the gates of the canon will rarely if ever make it inside themselves. Bukowski came in a secret back door.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eCategories:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLiterature \u0026amp; Fiction\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003ePoetry\u003cul class=\"category-tree\"\u003e\u003cli class=\"category-tree\"\u003eWomen Authors\u003c\/li\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n","brand":"Ecco","offers":[{"title":"Used - Good","offer_id":47424309395646,"sku":"0061228443-4","price":20.47,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0640\/9689\/5166\/files\/61eyTwxNXHL.jpg?v=1779290675","url":"https:\/\/shop.sustainablebooks.com\/products\/0061228443-the_pleasures_of_the_damned_poems-1951-1993","provider":"Sustainable Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}