[jackmccullough]

Word has come that John Updike died earlier today of lung cancer.

Many would consider him the greatest American writer of the second half of the twentieth century. It would certainly be hard to come close to his output of novels, short stories, poetry, and criticism, and he was a prose stylist second to none.

I consider this a great personal loss.

 

[jackmccullough]

^Well stated, Jack. Though I've read several of Updike's criticisms and essays, I have come upon his novels fairly recently. My goal is to make it through the Rabbit series within the next year or so.

Stick with it, even through Rabbit Redux, which is the weakest of the four.

 

[jackmccullough]

What do you mean by that, did you know him?
​

No, but his writing has enriched my life, and the world is less without him.