John Updike, 1932-2009

Author John Updike, 76, died today, January 27, 2009, of lung cancer. A major American novelist, poet, and critic, Updike wrote over 30 novels and collections in a career starting in the 1950s, winning virtually every literary prize, including two Pulitzers and two National Book Awards. His work spanned genres, and included The Witches of Eastwick (1984), literary post-holocaust novel Toward the End of Time (1997), and the internationally acclaimed series started with Rabbit, Run (1960).

A full obituary will appear in the next print issue of Locus.