Author Archives: johnupdikesociety

Updike a misogynist? Not according to these writers

Posted on March 28, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

Harry “Rabbit” Angstrom and several of John Updike’s other male characters have a stratospheric sex drive and a habit of pursuing sexual gratification so often that their antics have led to charges of misogyny in the #MeToo era. But not … Continue reading →

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Readers in Covid-19 isolation are turning to John Updike

Posted on March 28, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

Frank T. Pool (Longview News-Journal)recently quoted Emily Dickinson (“There is no Frigate like a Book / To take us Lands away”) and referenced John Updike, who “once said that he had read all of Dickens except for one novel, Our … Continue reading →

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Blogger writes of Quarantines and Updike

Posted on March 26, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

Blogger Ed Newman (Ennyman’s Territory: Arts, Culture and Other Life Obsessions) posted an entry today titled “Quarantines and Updike’s Four Life Forces.” It begins with a consideration of Leviticus 8:35 and the author revealing he once wanted to write a … Continue reading →

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Happy Birthday, John Updike

Posted on March 18, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

One of America’s most celebrated writers would have turned 88 today if he were still alive. His voice is missed, but his legacy goes on. With the help of family, classmates, friends, and fans, the John Updike Society is currently … Continue reading →

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New Updike monograph by Fromer now available for pre-order

Posted on February 25, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

The Moderate Imagination: The Political Thought of John Updike and the Decline of New Deal Liberalism, a monograph by John Updike Society member Yoav Fromer, is now available for pre-orders at Amazon.com. Scheduled for June 12, 2020 publication by the … Continue reading →

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Ten Updike books make the Bucket List 1000

Posted on February 6, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

List Challenges released their “Final List of Books Recommended in ‘1000 Books to Read Before You Die’: U-Z,” and of course John Updike made that list. Included in this Bucket List 1000 are (in order of listing): The Maples Stories … Continue reading →

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New Yorker February podcasts start with an Updike story

Posted on February 2, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

Yesterday The New Yorker podcasts began the month with playwright David Rabe reading John Updike’s short story, “The Other Side of the Street,” which was published in a 1991 issue of the magazine. He was joined by Deborah Treisman for … Continue reading →

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Book clinic recommends romantic reads, like Updike’s Couples

Posted on January 12, 2020 by johnupdikesociety

The Observer‘s Book critic, Kate Kellaway, was asked to recommend “some good romantic novels that are not cliched,” and she responded, “Your question makes me think about what it is to be cliched—if only because you might argue that love … Continue reading →

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Updike’s early Christmas memory recalled

Posted on December 27, 2019 by johnupdikesociety

Scot Lehigh began his Boston Globe opinion piece on “The bookish delights of Christmas” with a recollection of an exchange he had with John Updike about gifts. He had asked Updike and “other luminaries” to talk about “their favorite Christmas … Continue reading →

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Updike Society receives American Family Insurance award

Posted on November 4, 2019 by johnupdikesociety

Because of their work preserving The John Updike Childhood Home and turning it into a museum, The John Updike Society was chosen as one of 100 nonprofit organizations to receive a $2500 donation from American Family Insurance and the American … Continue reading →

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