There's a lot made of the fact this is Bukowski's most autobiographical work but there's so much more to it than that. I was disappointed in Hollywood, I had expected more the first time I read it and the second it just felt a little inflated towards the end but Ham on Rye is a masterclass in writing. Perfect storytelling, perfect humour and the writing is as tight as lazer guided as it's ever going to be. It has echoes of Fante without coming across as an imitation, it's beautifully penned and realistically romantic with every sentence. I wish I could read it again for the first time.
