Marc Chacksfield has recommended “The books that will actually make you laugh: The funniest novels ever written”—a list published on shortlist.com. And one of Updike’s novels tickled his funnybone: The Witches of Eastwick (1984).

Of Witches, Chacksfield wrote, “The big screen adaptation is naturally hilarious, but Updike’s original source material is a wonderful exercise in satire. Three women in the Rhode Island town of Eastwick acquire witch-like powers after being spurned by their husbands. Swearing to wreak vengeance, they run amok until the mysterious appearance of Darryl Van Horne. What follows is high farce and social satire rolled into one. Mischievous doesn’t begin to cover it.”

Of course, there’s no shortage of humor in Updike, whether you tag along with his Jewish alter ego Henry Bech in three novels, savor the satire of American overconsumption in The Coup, or chuckle over Updike’s minister in A Month of Sundays who is sent to a retreat as a curative for his penchant of sexually fleecing his flock.

Read the whole list

We love lists, and so does The Guardian (UK), which named John Updike’s debut novel, The Poorhouse Fair, as his twelfth best, despite calling it “a curio.” Number 1 on their list—no surprise—is Rabbit Angstrom, the Everyman’s Library compilation of the author’s four “Rabbit” books, which they ranked (best to least) Rabbit at Rest (1990), Rabbit Is Rich (1981)—both Pulitzer Prize winners—followed by Rabbit, Run (1960) and Rabbit Redux (1972).

Roger’s Version (1986) placed No. 2 on their list, with Couples (1968), notorious as Updike’s raciest book, not far behind at No. 3. Then comes the Everyman’s Library compilation of Updike’s Henry Bech sagas, and Updike’s slender Of the Farm (1965) at No. 5, followed by The Witches of Eastwick (1984) at No. 6 and The Centaur (1963) at No. 7.

The biggest surprise is that Memories of the Ford Administration (1992)—generally dismissed by most readers, critics, and scholars—came in at No. 8, ahead of the much-acclaimed Gertrude and Claudius (2000) at No. 9, S. (1988)—Updike’s final volume in his Scarlet Letter trilogy—at No. 10, and the under-appreciated Seek My Face (2002) at No. 11.

Read what The Guardian had to say about each pick.

When you see an article on “19 Novels That Captured the Rise of the American Suburb” in the Travel and Guides section of a website, you know you can gas up the car and head to either Shillington, Pennsylvania or Ipswich, Massachusetts, because one of Updike’s domestic novels likely will be included.

This time it’s Pennsylvania.

“John Updike’s 1960 novel introduced readers to Harry ‘Rabbit’ Angstrom, perhaps the most iconic character in suburban literature. Harry ‘Rabbit’ Angstrom is a middle-class man who feels there is something missing from his life. The novel follows Rabbit as he flees his suburban responsibilities—his pregnant wife, his job, his entire life—in a desperate attempt to recapture the vitality of his youth. Frank Wheeler, Piet Hanema, Frank Bascombe – these are a handful of the suburban men in the fiction of Richard Yates, John Updike, and Richard Ford. These writers all display certain characteristics of the suburban novel in the post-WWII era: the male experience placed at the forefront of narration, the importance of competition both socially and economically, contrasting feelings of desire and loathing for predictability, and the impact of an increasingly developed landscape upon the American psyche and the individual’s mind. Updike’s genius was in making Rabbit both sympathetic and infuriating—a man whose suburban malaise drives him to make increasingly destructive choices. The novel launched a series that would span four decades, chronicling the evolution of suburban America through one man’s journey.

See what other books made Fritz Von Burkersroda’s list

Writing for Festivaltopia, Fritz von Burkersroda recommends “20 Books That Start at the End—and Still Surprise You”: One Hundred Years of Solitude and Chronicle of a Death Foretold (Márquez), The Secret History (Tartt), Fight Club (Palahniuk), The Book Thief (Zuzak), American Beauty (Ball), Before I Fall (Oliver), The Lovely Bones (Sebold), We Need to Talk About Kevin (Shriver), The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao (Díaz), An American Marriage (Jones), The Arsonist’s City (Alyan), Everything I Never Told You (Ng), Atonement (McEwan), Dark Places (Flynn), The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August (North), They Both Die at the End (Silvera), The Sense of an Ending (Barnes), Revolutionary Road (Yates), and John Updike’s Rabbit, Run. “Rabbit, Run opens with Harry ‘Rabbit’ Angstrom running out on his family—not the lead-up, but the aftermath. The rest of the novel digs deep into the why, exploring freedom, failure, and the pressures of adulthood. Updike’s portrayal of postwar American life is as vivid as it is critical, painting Rabbit’s choices as both selfish and painfully human. The story’s realism and attention to detail have made it a staple in discussions of American literature. Critics highlight how Updike’s exploration of existential angst still feels modern, with the consequences of Rabbit’s actions rippling out in unexpected ways. The book’s unflinching honesty ensures that even if you know where it all starts, you’re never sure where it will end.”