South No North

One of those nights... And it's warm beer and cold women, know I just don't fit in Cause every joint I stumbled into tonight That's just how it's been All these double knit strangers with gin and vermouth and recycled stories in the naugahyde booths With the platinum blondes and tobacco brunettes I'll be drinkin' to forget you I'll light another cigarette And the band's playing something by Tammy Wynette And the drinks are on me tonight All my conversations now I'll just be talkin' about you baby Boring some sailor as I try to get through I just want him to listen now I said that's all you have to do He said I'm better off without you till I showed him my tattoo And now the moon's rising, ain't got no time to lose Time to get down to drinking Tell the band to play the blues Now the drink's are on me, I'll buy a couple rounds At the last ditch attempt saloon Warm beer, cold women, No I just don't fit in Every joint I stumbled into tonight That's just how it's been All these double knit strangers with gin and vermouth Receding hairlines in the naugahyde booths And the platinum blonde, tobacco brunette I'll be drinking to forget you babe I'll light a menthal another cigarette And the band's playing something by Johnnie Barnett At the last ditch hotel saloon -It's Buk. Not much more needs to be said than that. You can't really go wrong picking ANYTHING by him and just going with it. This is no exception. Truly no exception. It's absolutely perfect, from start to finish, and truly captures all that is, and was, Buk. Get this, and cherish it and you will not regret it. Swipe a bottle of scotch before you settle in with it, and you'll be even happier.

South of No North was one of the first Bukowski works that I read and it was the one that reeled me in like a fish. A fantastic work of great scope and understanding. This book speaks to you in a way that few will. It speaks to every part of you - the mind, heart, soul, conscious, unconscious, etc. This is a must for anyone interested in a plain, honest treatment of human life with all of its peaks and valleys.

I've read a lot of Bukowski, and this one is unique. The stories in this book are amazingly depressing and uplifting, all at the same time. It's both the subject matter and the way the stories are told that makes it so powerful. Definitely something to check out: a great starting point for Bukowski newbies and also amazing for those who've read other things he has written. Highly recommended

South of No North, by Charles Bukowski, is a collection of short stories. Bukowski started writing short stories twenty years before he hit the poetry -- the bottle was in between and, seemingly, forever -- and his stories are haunting. You will find where he started, in stories that include glimpses into his "lost" years when he was a drifting worker and bum. When he works in the deseret carying railroad ties, you feel the slivers in his gloveless hands, and you feel what it may have been that drove him to all the rest. South of No North is his early best