Told in the first person, protagonist Hank Chinaski is a thinly veiled version of the author — a womanizing, gambling, foul mouthed, alcoholic, postal worker. Often described as gritty and raw, I expected to delve into the dark side of human nature but amidst the misery of work and all the seedy ways that he copes, Bukowski can be brilliant, funny, insightful and strangely endearing, especially if you‘ve ever had a truly rotten job.