CHARLES BUKOWSKI Wspomnienia Scarlet

by Pamela Wood

Zaczelo sie pod wplywem impulsu - przelotna znajomosc pomiedzy ikonicznym Charlesem Bukowskim a jego slynna muza, Pamela ,,Cupcakes" Wood, która doprowadzila do dwuletniego zwiazku, opisywanego przez Wood w tym pamietniku bez zbednego owijania w bawelne. Jest to orzezwiajaco prostolinijna historia ich pelnego absurdów, lecz i czaru zwiazku.
To spelniony sen entuzjastów Bukowskiego - pelne zanurzenie sie w jego zycie u boku niezaleznej i rezolutnej Scarlet, kobiety, o której pisal w ksiazce pod tymze tytulem, jak równiez w wielu wierszach. W powiesci Bukowskiego Kobiety pojawia sie ona jako Tammie.
Kim jest Scarlet? Skad wziela sie tak silna chemia pomiedzy Bukowskim a kobieta, której tozsamosc wielu intrygowala? Niniejsza ksiazka to wciagajaca i blyskotliwa historia ich wspólnego pelna milosci i dowcipu, skomplikowana, a czasem skandaliczna. Widzimy Buka jako niepozbawionego wad geniusza, dostrzegamy jego utajona gwaltownosc, wychodzaca na jaw pod wplywem alkoholu, ale i doceniamy jego prawdziwa, wrazliwa i wspólczujaca nature.
Swietnie napisana, zywa i poruszajaca ksiazka. Czytajac ja, mialem wrazenie, ze siedze z Pamela Wood i z Bukowskim w jednym pokoju.
Dan Fante, pisarz
Scarlet przypomina czytelnikowi, za co podziwiamy Bukowskiego, poglebia zrozumienie jego nietuzinkowej i mimo wszystko uroczej osobowosci.
Howard Sounes, biograf Bukowskiego

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction

312 pages, Hardcover

First published April 3, 2010

Reviews

[Ville Verkkapuro · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit that I enjoyed reading this book very, very much. I've been growing up with Bukowski, found his name from a music magazine as a kid and started with the poems and fell in love with the world they portrayed, the brutal honesty and clarity of it all, yet the warm and tender heart in the midst of it.
Let's get this straight: I'm not a fan of the man. I'm a fan of his writing and the position where it comes from. There's so much frustration, anger, all kinds of fucked-up, negative feelings – how couldn't there be? That's why it resonates so widely. It's supposed to be wrong and unethical.
Every time I say that I enjoy the writings of Bukowski I feel ashamed, as I feel that I get judged by fanboying the misogynistic man-child who deserved to be slapped across his ugly face. But I don't share the values of everything I read, quite the opposite: I try to read to broaden my perspectives.
Okay, okay, about this book: it's written by Pamela "Cupcakes" Wood and it's really powerful. It reads like a Bukowski novel, but has a very interesting angle and makes Bukowski a well-rounded character, ugly and stupid and jealous and violent yet still tender, sweet, broken.
This book had a lot of love. It was beautiful.
I would've loved to read more of the life of Cups. Imagine if she would've written as many books as Bukowski, documenting her life? I'd have absolutely no need to read Bukowski then.

[Scott Holstad · Rating 3 out of 5]

January 6, 2013 -- EDIT:

The author of this book emailed me today and wrote me a very gracious email when she could have rightly attacked me for being so mean spirited in my short, bad review of her book. She assured me of the truthfulness of the book's contents and told me Bukowski's publisher, John Martin, had vetted it, so that made it legitimate in my eyes. I feel really very bad for trashing another writer for no good reason. Buk was a hero of mine and I didn't like seeing what was written about him. It's as simple as that. Still, that didn't give me reason to trash the author and I want to publicly apologize for that. I might go back and re-read the book now. I'm going to post my email to Ms. Wood for everyone to see, so that my apology is made public.


Dear Pamela,

Thank you for your gracious email -- very unexpected. I feel about an inch tall now. I just went back and re-read that mini-review I wrote some time back and it was mean spirited and wrong of me to attack you, and for that I apologize. I still don't like the book, but I'll believe you when you say it's true and having John Martin OK it speaks volumes, you're right.

See, Bukowski has been my hero for many decades now. Among my most treasured possessions are books and t-shirts he autographed for me when he was obviously still alive. He and I corresponded, which meant a lot to me as a young writer. We also appeared in a lot of the same magazines together. I know he had a real sensitive side to him that he liked to hide with his gruff exterior, but I loved his tough guy image. And your book damaged that image I had of him. It was hard for me to believe he could be so p***y whipped, which is what it seemed like to me. I'm sure that was the case and kudos to you for making it happen. It just was hard for me to read. It was like seeing my hero toppled from the throne. Maybe that helps explain my hostility.

But nothing excuses my hostility. Again, I apologize profusely. I'm sorry for calling you a crappy writer. You were published by a good press and the writing was fine -- I just didn't like what was written. I'm sorry for making a personal attack against your appearance. That was really below the belt. I'm ashamed.

I've never done this, but I'm going to see if I can't edit my book review and provide some more details and better context, complete with apology. I assume I can do this with Goodreads. If it's any consolation to you, the only bad review one of my books got on that site was from someone who admitted in the review he hadn't even read my book -- he just wanted to trash it. That stung.

I'm glad you've worked so hard to become successful in your life and continued good luck to you in your endeavors. It must be something to be somewhat of a living legend. That's something no one can take from you. Thanks again for your email.

Regards,
Scott Holstad

_______________________________________________


I thought this was a terrible book by a crappy writer with an ax to grind, who also was extraordinarily narcissistic. She really felt like the world revolved around her and Bukowski jumped to be with her. She was a high school drop out who had a kid at something like age 15 who was a waitress at a dump. And one of the greatest authors in the world is drooling over her and does her every bidding cause she's so great and she feels sorry for him, so she lets him near her. I found almost nothing in the book to be remotely credible. Buk may have had a thing for her, but she places far too much importance on herself, in my opinion. It also looks like she's had some work done judging by the back cover photo. Honestly, I thought she was pond scum. Sorry.

[Özgür Tekin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Belgeselin birinde Bukowski ile röportaj yapıyorlar, moruğun elinde etiketi henüz sökülmeye başlanmamış bir bira, yine kendini ağırdan satıyor. Belli belirsiz bir araba sesi duyuluyor. Anne babasını bekleyen bir çocuk telaşıyla yerinden fırlıyor. Yerden bir adam boyu yükseklikteki pencerenin camından dışarısını kesiyor. Cupcakes'tir diye hevesleniyor. Değilmiş; yenik, koltuğa yığılıyor.

Cupcakes'in Bukowski'ye ilişkin anılarını merak etme sebebim bu anlattığım sahneydi. Cupcakes'in o dönemdeki duyguları türlü çeşit haplar ve alkolle bir güzel silindiğinden kitabın duygusal dokusu dümdüz. Hayatına kim girse, Buk dahil, sevmeyi becerememiş.

Bukowski açısından baktığımda ise yazarların büyük deformasyonundan mustarip olduğunu görüyorum. Bir yazar nasıl gerçek birini sevebilir? Sevemez. Yazarlar ve edebiyat, kurgu diye anılan yalanın ateşinin etrafında toplanır. Gerçekler ateşi besler ama asıl büyü hep ateştedir.

[Milena Szymak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bardzo przyjemnie się ją czytało, ciekawa perspektywa na postać Bukowskiego

[Jesse Easley · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting view of Charles Bukowski from a woman who was his girlfriend for a year. But more it's about her being young and addicted to speed and finally getting her life together and realizing that the people you love such as her daughter was more important than the out of control life style she was living. Also a good glimpse of 70s Los Angeles. She was a care free spirit and her remembering of Bukowski is both critical and caring. I think I had a fear that the book would be dark and depressing, but she always kept space between her and Bukowski which allowed them to never grind each other down at their low points.

[Tiffany Kilburn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its not that its a bad book. I just didn't like her attitude. She likes herself a lot...a lot. She name drops too and it drives me crazy. Don't be confused, this book is more about her than our man we love. Idk I wanted to know what made him tick and I felt this fell flat in that area. I enjoyed the pics and the story about the interview I've watched a thousand times lol Just nothing new. Things we already knew about him.

[Mahmud Mahmudov · Rating 2 out of 5]

A mediocre book that tries to cash in on Bukowski's name

[Jeremy S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

What more can be said about Charles Bukowski? A literary titan known throughout the world, and an artist who has been the subject of various biographies, films and even museum retrospectives. Well, apparently there's a lot more that can be said about him, and first time author Pamela Wood is perhaps the perfect person to do it.

Ms. Wood spent a formidable time in her 20's becoming somewhat of a muse of Bukowski's. The two endured a short, yet volatile relationship and Ms. Wood became fully entrenched in the author's infamous world during the mid 1970's. She was the subject of a fair amount of Bukowski's work and was present for well known film interviews, live readings and most importantly, the daily goings on of his life.

Scarlet is a well tuned story whose narrative is both whimsical and witty and Wood's ability to portray Bukowski in a light most of us have never seen or read about is of particular interest. The two clearly shared a special bond which lead to an explosive relationship in the truest sense of the word. Beyond the romance, turmoil, substance abuse and chain smoking, we see Bukowski as a kind and gentle man, who truly loves his "Red" and ultimately just wants her in his life. He is always proud to have her on his arm and is most happy just watching her be herself around his apartment. Ms. Wood also does a fine job weaving in pieces from different spheres of her life, including her relationships with her daughter, brother and the rest of her family and friends.

Overall, this is an enjoyable book that moves along at a nice pace and continuously keeps you interested with fresh stories from the Bukowski East Hollywood we all know and love. My favorite part was seeing Ms. Wood's view of the author. She was not a fan of his work and actually, didn't know anything about it at all. We simply watch her meet this interesting character people around her constantly praise, and what evolves is a pure and heartfelt romance which might be self-destructive at times, but maintains a certain charm that we can all appreciate, and perhaps yearn for ourselves.

Recommended for fans of Bukowski, Los Angeles literature and the fabulous 70s.

-JRS

[Michelle Hoogterp · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Bukowski's poetry so it was interesting to read about part of his life. I've not yet read the biography Wood mentions in the book, but I will. I highly recommend this to Bukowski's fans or even to people who enjoy reading autobiography/biographies. This is really about Bukowski's one-time lover Pamela Wood, but there's insight into Bukowski too.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

My friend's Aunt was cupcakes aka Scarlet. While the book is written simply, I think it's its strength. I found it really interesting to hear her account and her encounters with Bukowski. It's a gentle side you don't read much about.

[Hosho · Rating 5 out of 5]

An honest & engaging look at the Bukowski she knew, and one very different than the swirling, mythic one.

[Subhankar Das · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it.

[Roxana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Może ja już za dużo czytałam o Bukowskim. Nic nowego. Iście hollywodzka opowieść.

[jaikx · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5