Thursday, January 29, 2009

Rabbit at War

I did not like the John Updike upon first encounter in high school. Harry Angstrom (Rabbit) is not my cup of tea and so I never really followed up and read his other material. However, before the Cold War ended I read this piece by John Updike in Commentary. It is a beautiful rendition of the liberal anti-Communist cause. The Weathermen make an appearance. Updike voted Democrat and came out for Obama this time as well. But this take down of the easy anti-anti-Communism of the Boston literati thrilled me then and it thrills me now.

I read almost no fiction anymore save historical fiction and so am unlikely to ever pick up his work again, but at a time when it was easy to abandon one's country and a small people far away of whom we know little, Updike didn't. R.I.P.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

At the risk of invoking the wrath of the html police, here's some of his non-fiction that I know you'll appreciate:

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/articles/hub_fans_bid_kid_adieu_article.shtml

JWT

Anonymous said...

Better yet, let me try inserting a better link.

Anonymous said...

JU was serious golfer but he knew enough not to take it too seriously. I am trying to find an appropriate quote of his about the game.