Charles Bukowski as a teenager in 1939, the period of his life described in the novel Ham on Rye. (Los Angeles High School)

Praise for Charles Bukowski: Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life

'Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life is a generous tribute to Bukowski's genius and it clearly and truthfully captures the essence of Bukowski both as writer and man.'
John Martin, Bukowski's publisher and editor

'Exhilarating, hilarious and often emotionally draining, this superb biography of the maverick, hard-bitten bard of the Los Angeles demimonde uncorks a potent brew of wild, anti-heroic anecdotes.'
Publishers Weekly (USA)

'This biography is an affectionate and thorough introduction that will not be rivalled for quite some time. Its effect is to revitalise rather than reduce Bukowski's work: poems and stories that help keep people alive.'
Guy Mannes-Abbott, The Independent (UK)

'Howard Sounes' excellent biography, [like] its hero's ideal blonde, is short, shapely and full.'
Hilary Spurling, The Daily Telegraph (UK)

'With no shortage of anecdotes, pictures or big names, this [biography] is so thorough and sharp that it may as well be the last.'
Graham Caveney, Arena (UK)

'Wonderful.... An excellent book about a remarkable man.'
Ross Fortune, Time Out (UK)

'A fine, fair, engrossing study of America's laureate of low life'
Donny O'Rourke, The [Glasgow] Herald (UK)

'A must-read for anybody who is a fan of Bukowski's writing, Charles Bukowski successfully conjures up the voice of this outrageous character and offers clear-eyed insight into his extraordinary life.'
Martha Watson, The Globe and Mail (Canada)

'[An ] engaging biography …Sounes adroitly uses snippets of Bukowski's poems to comment upon the writer's life, and his interviews and correspondence with everyone from Sean Penn to Bukowski's former girlfriends reveal a more sensitive and vulnerable artist than the [persona] Bukowski so diligently created.'
John D. Thomas, New York Times Book Review (USA)

'Proving himself to be an excellent author in his own right, Sounes [has created] a great read.'
Amanda Ferguson, Minneapolis City Pages (USA)

'[Sounes is] a good and thorough biographer.'
Bruce Cook, The Washington Post (USA)

'A fine storyteller, descriptive and visual, Sounes …shows compassion and respect [for his subject]. By the time you've finished Locked in the Arms of a Crazy Life, you know Bukowski was locked in the arms of a true artist's life.'
Tulsa Kinney, LA Weekly (USA)