John Updike, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist who was regarded as one of the greatest writers of life in the postwar prime of the American empire, died today at age 76.

Updike was an extremely prolific author, producing an unprecedented amount of fiction, poetry, nonfiction and critique over his lifetime. He often wrote novels in a series, becoming best known for his acclaimed Rabbit tetralogy, Rabbit, Run (1960), Rabbit Redux (1971), Rabbit Is Rich (1981) and Rabbit at Rest (1990). He won the Pulitzer Prize for both Rabbit Is Rich and Rabbit at Rest. A rarity among American writers, Updike was a much-esteemed author whose books were best-sellers as well, including Couples (1968), The Witches of Eastwick (1984) and Terrorist (2006). A small collection of Updike's letters, held in the University of Iowa Libraries' Archives, includes correspondences between Updike and his close friend (and then Iowa Writers' Workshop director) John Leggett.

Born on March 18, 1932, in Reading, Pa, Updike began writing at an early age. He later attended Harvard, serving as president of the Harvard Lampoon, before graduating in 1954. He began working at The New Yorker in 1955, continuing to write criticism for the publication for decades. Read more...