1Pablum
This March 18th is John Updike's 80th birthday. NPR had a nice half-hour show in honor of Updike on today's Fresh Air: http://weku.fm/post/revisiting-john-updikes-fresh-air-interviews
My dream would be for LOA to put out the complete works of Updike in a number of volumes (I wonder how many it would take, both fiction and non), akin to the Philip Roth.
My dream would be for LOA to put out the complete works of Updike in a number of volumes (I wonder how many it would take, both fiction and non), akin to the Philip Roth.
2bretflet
Presumably, it's copyright keeping Updike from the LOA pantheon. There are two Everyman's Library Editions of Updike to hold you over. I own the Rabbit Angstrom tetralogy. The print is a bit tiny and some may scoff at Updike admitting he slightly rewrote sections to "fix" problems he had with the original books.
I just looked at Updike's the Complete Bech on Amazon and found an interesting review: "There is however, I'm sad to say, a big ugly boil on the butt of this otherwise handsome volume: the semi-infamous "Bech Noir", in which Updike, seemingly grown disgusted with the continuing durability of his character, jerks him through a sour ludicrous pantomime - the sheer awfulness of which makes it almost impossible to look at him the same way again. .... It's as if Frank L. Baum, around the fourth or fifth Oz book, had Dorothy move to Los Angeles where she became a crack whore."
I just looked at Updike's the Complete Bech on Amazon and found an interesting review: "There is however, I'm sad to say, a big ugly boil on the butt of this otherwise handsome volume: the semi-infamous "Bech Noir", in which Updike, seemingly grown disgusted with the continuing durability of his character, jerks him through a sour ludicrous pantomime - the sheer awfulness of which makes it almost impossible to look at him the same way again. .... It's as if Frank L. Baum, around the fourth or fifth Oz book, had Dorothy move to Los Angeles where she became a crack whore."
3brother_salvatore
>1 Pablum: I listened yesterday, and the interviews with Updike are truly wonderful. I couldn't agree more with your recommendation about an Updike LOA - I think it might happenf eventually, but probably not anytime soon. And while we're on the subject, I'd also love to see Joyce Carol Oates in some LOA editions.
4Pablum
Weren't there some rumors before that a complete works was being worked on even during Updike's life? Trying to approximate the number of volumes is sort of mindblowing though: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Updike_bibliography
5CurrerBell
3> Oh me oh my, Salvatore, I mean, how could LoA (how could anyone) ever come up with anything approaching more than a tiny sampling of Oates's output? ;-o
Maybe they'll make an effort some day if she eventually gets the Nobel she's entitled to. I assume you know, of course, that Oates edited the Shirley Jackson volume? And David's posted on another thread that there's an additional Shirley Jackson volume in the offing, though he couldn't say whether Oates will be editing that one as well.
Maybe they'll make an effort some day if she eventually gets the Nobel she's entitled to. I assume you know, of course, that Oates edited the Shirley Jackson volume? And David's posted on another thread that there's an additional Shirley Jackson volume in the offing, though he couldn't say whether Oates will be editing that one as well.
6brother_salvatore
>5 CurrerBell:. Ya I suspect it would have to be a small selection for an LOA Oates, but one can at least dream :)
I did get the LOA Shirley that Oates edited. I was unaware of a volume two in the future, which is great news!
I did get the LOA Shirley that Oates edited. I was unaware of a volume two in the future, which is great news!
7jasbro
Somebody's gotta do a complete John Updike someday, and Joyce Carol Oates too (but I'm not in a hurry while she's still with us). It might as well be LOA!
Indeed, it makes sense for LOA to move forward with more contemporary writers, now that they've pretty well secured Henry James, Mark Twain, Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Washington Irving, and a predominance of other 17th, 18th and 19th Century writers. During the Twentieth Century, American life and letters saw an explosion of literacy and content -- William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, to name a few.
The challenging question may be just how complete, or representative, should further Series titles be? John Gardner? Robert Penn Warren? Thomas Pynchon? William S. Burroughs? (Now there's a challenge!) Dorothy Parker? Shirley Ann Grau? William Carlos Williams? James Patterson? (No, wait ... ; let's hold off on that one).
I, for one, was a bit disappointed that James Thurber got just one volume (so far), although his stuff is sufficiently "sketchy" that it might really be enough / for the best. More Shirley Jackson would be welcome, as was Paul Bowles.
I'm also disappointed to see the "splintering" of LOA offerings, with ever-increasing "non-Series" titles (Manny Farber, Pauline Kael -- even Updike! See Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu: John Updike on Ted Williams). Having subscribed since (almost) the beginning, I still really like the LOA editions and want to be supportive of their mission; but I'm finding it's easiest to just "default" to the Series books, and increasingly difficult to keep up with all the extras.
And yet, I don't envy them the job of trying to figure out where they (and we) will be with books in another 10, 5, or even 1 year. Do they go all-in for ebooks? Do they concentrate on titles that sell consistently? Do they become a repository / archive of historic record? Do they serve subscribers, college students, dilettantes? One or the other priority will ultimately prevail, and I hope to remain among their constituents while I can!
(With apologies for the apparent hijacking, see also http://www.librarything.com/topic/135182 . Thanks!)
Indeed, it makes sense for LOA to move forward with more contemporary writers, now that they've pretty well secured Henry James, Mark Twain, Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Washington Irving, and a predominance of other 17th, 18th and 19th Century writers. During the Twentieth Century, American life and letters saw an explosion of literacy and content -- William Faulkner, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, to name a few.
The challenging question may be just how complete, or representative, should further Series titles be? John Gardner? Robert Penn Warren? Thomas Pynchon? William S. Burroughs? (Now there's a challenge!) Dorothy Parker? Shirley Ann Grau? William Carlos Williams? James Patterson? (No, wait ... ; let's hold off on that one).
I, for one, was a bit disappointed that James Thurber got just one volume (so far), although his stuff is sufficiently "sketchy" that it might really be enough / for the best. More Shirley Jackson would be welcome, as was Paul Bowles.
I'm also disappointed to see the "splintering" of LOA offerings, with ever-increasing "non-Series" titles (Manny Farber, Pauline Kael -- even Updike! See Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu: John Updike on Ted Williams). Having subscribed since (almost) the beginning, I still really like the LOA editions and want to be supportive of their mission; but I'm finding it's easiest to just "default" to the Series books, and increasingly difficult to keep up with all the extras.
And yet, I don't envy them the job of trying to figure out where they (and we) will be with books in another 10, 5, or even 1 year. Do they go all-in for ebooks? Do they concentrate on titles that sell consistently? Do they become a repository / archive of historic record? Do they serve subscribers, college students, dilettantes? One or the other priority will ultimately prevail, and I hope to remain among their constituents while I can!
(With apologies for the apparent hijacking, see also http://www.librarything.com/topic/135182 . Thanks!)
8ptdixon
I believe David has mentioned that Shirley Jackson has another volume coming... In regards to Updike, I am sure the question is one of rights rather than of desire.
I do agree with the concern regarding "splintering"; this is also showing with the new Tarzan/John Carter volumes. I like the idea of more authors being published in quality volumes, even if not "LOA" quality, but I hope the trend doesn't result in the loss of some of the boarderline authors (the pulp/sci fi/noir writers in particular). I will say, however, that the publishing of the Ted Williams volume struck me as more about Ted Williams and less about Updike...
I do agree with the concern regarding "splintering"; this is also showing with the new Tarzan/John Carter volumes. I like the idea of more authors being published in quality volumes, even if not "LOA" quality, but I hope the trend doesn't result in the loss of some of the boarderline authors (the pulp/sci fi/noir writers in particular). I will say, however, that the publishing of the Ted Williams volume struck me as more about Ted Williams and less about Updike...
9Pablum
So Roth is essentially done after this January, unless (hopefully) a supplementary volume of short fiction and other writings comes about. How about starting on Updike? I'd like to reiterate my sincere question from before: I wonder how many volumes would be in a theoretical complete LOA set of Updike's works?
10Pablum
Cannot wait! Wish we could see the contents already.
http://blog.loa.org/2013/02/forthcoming-from-library-of-america.html
John Updike
The Collected Stories
Christopher Carduff, editor
September 2013
Boxed set / ISBN 978-1-59853-250-0
Volume 1: Collected Early Stories (102 stories)
Library of America #242 / ISBN 978-1-59853-251-7
Volume 2: Collected Later Stories (84 stories)
Library of America #243 / ISBN 978-1-59853-252-4
Seems like Vol. 1 will pretty much mirror Updike's own Early Stories volume (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Early_Stories:_1953%E2%80%931975). David, how likely are Updike's collected novels?
http://blog.loa.org/2013/02/forthcoming-from-library-of-america.html
John Updike
The Collected Stories
Christopher Carduff, editor
September 2013
Boxed set / ISBN 978-1-59853-250-0
Volume 1: Collected Early Stories (102 stories)
Library of America #242 / ISBN 978-1-59853-251-7
Volume 2: Collected Later Stories (84 stories)
Library of America #243 / ISBN 978-1-59853-252-4
Seems like Vol. 1 will pretty much mirror Updike's own Early Stories volume (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Early_Stories:_1953%E2%80%931975). David, how likely are Updike's collected novels?
11Pablum
Amazon has the books up for preorder:
John Updike: Collected Early Stories: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1598532510/
The Library of America presents the first of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 102 classic stories that chart Updike’s emergence as America’s foremost practitioner of the short story, “our second Hawthorne,” as Philip Roth described him. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time.
John Updike: Collected Later Stories: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1598532529/
The Library of America presents the second of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 84 classic stories that display the virtuosic command of character, dialogue, and sensual description that was Updike’s signature.. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time.
John Updike: The Collected Stories: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1598532502/
From his first collection, The Same Door, released in 1959, to his last, My Father’s Tears, published fifty years later, John Updike was America’s reigning master of the short story, “our second Hawthorne,” as Philip Roth described him. His evocations of small-town Pennsylvania life, and of his own religious, artistic, and sexual awakening, transfixed readers of The New Yorker and of the early collections Pigeon Feathers (1962) and The Music School (1966). In these and the works that followed—the formal experiments and wickedly tart tales of suburban adultery in Museums and Women (1972) and Problems (1979), the portraits of middle-aged couples in love and at war with aging parents and rebellious children in Trust Me (1987) and The Afterlife (1994), and the fugue-like stories of memory, desire, travel, and unquenched thirst for life in Licks of Love (2000) and My Father’s Tears (2009)—Updike displayed the virtuosic command of character, dialogue, and sensual description that was his signature. Here, in two career-spanning volumes, are 186 unforgettable stories, from “Ace in the Hole” (1953), a sketch of a Rabbit-like ex-basketball player written when Updike was a Harvard senior, to “The Full Glass” (2008), the author’s “toast to the visible world, his own impending disappearance from it be damned.” Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time. This unprecedented collection of American masterpieces is not just the publishing event of the season, it is a national literary treasure.
John Updike: Collected Early Stories: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1598532510/
The Library of America presents the first of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 102 classic stories that chart Updike’s emergence as America’s foremost practitioner of the short story, “our second Hawthorne,” as Philip Roth described him. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time.
John Updike: Collected Later Stories: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1598532529/
The Library of America presents the second of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 84 classic stories that display the virtuosic command of character, dialogue, and sensual description that was Updike’s signature.. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time.
John Updike: The Collected Stories: http://www.amazon.com/dp/1598532502/
From his first collection, The Same Door, released in 1959, to his last, My Father’s Tears, published fifty years later, John Updike was America’s reigning master of the short story, “our second Hawthorne,” as Philip Roth described him. His evocations of small-town Pennsylvania life, and of his own religious, artistic, and sexual awakening, transfixed readers of The New Yorker and of the early collections Pigeon Feathers (1962) and The Music School (1966). In these and the works that followed—the formal experiments and wickedly tart tales of suburban adultery in Museums and Women (1972) and Problems (1979), the portraits of middle-aged couples in love and at war with aging parents and rebellious children in Trust Me (1987) and The Afterlife (1994), and the fugue-like stories of memory, desire, travel, and unquenched thirst for life in Licks of Love (2000) and My Father’s Tears (2009)—Updike displayed the virtuosic command of character, dialogue, and sensual description that was his signature. Here, in two career-spanning volumes, are 186 unforgettable stories, from “Ace in the Hole” (1953), a sketch of a Rabbit-like ex-basketball player written when Updike was a Harvard senior, to “The Full Glass” (2008), the author’s “toast to the visible world, his own impending disappearance from it be damned.” Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time. This unprecedented collection of American masterpieces is not just the publishing event of the season, it is a national literary treasure.
14brother_salvatore
I was just paying my bill online for my latest arrival, when I clicked on the 'buy additional volumes" link and I saw that the Updike volumes are listed for release this July. Amazon has them coming out in Sept, so unsure if that is a mistake or whether we actually are getting them sooner. If so, it really made my day - really looking forward to these volumes.
15DCloyceSmith
They books are arriving in the LOA warehouse next week. We often receive books 6-8 weeks before they reach bookstores. --David
16Pablum
Very interesting article as we await the books: http://blogs.iwu.edu/johnupdikesociety/2013/07/12/updike-scholarship-gets-a-boos...
Wonder how soon we could know about further Updike volumes? And I wonder whether those omitted "minor" pieces might be placed in some future volume?
Wonder how soon we could know about further Updike volumes? And I wonder whether those omitted "minor" pieces might be placed in some future volume?
17Pablum
Been reading the first volume. So pleasurable, just sublime. Cannot wait for everything from Updike lining my bookshelves in black LOA spines.
18Pablum
http://blog.loa.org/2013/09/christopher-carduff-on-everyday-sublime.html
Are any stories omitted from this Library of America set?
Apart from a few things published in The Harvard Lampoon—juvenilia that have no place in his canon proper—the most obvious omissions are the eighteen stories concerning the recurring characters Richard and Joan Maple and the twenty stories chronicling the life of the Jewish American novelist Henry Bech. These, as Updike wrote, “do gain from being grouped,” and will be grouped in a later Library of America volume, together with the ten essay-stories of the 1970s known collectively as “Interviews with Insufficiently Famous Americans.” Included here, however, are “Snowing in Greenwich Village” (1956), the first Maples story, and “The Bulgarian Poetess” (1964), the first of the Bechs, on the (perhaps) shaky ground that when Updike wrote each of these stand-alone stories, he didn’t know he was beginning a short story cycle.
Are any stories omitted from this Library of America set?
Apart from a few things published in The Harvard Lampoon—juvenilia that have no place in his canon proper—the most obvious omissions are the eighteen stories concerning the recurring characters Richard and Joan Maple and the twenty stories chronicling the life of the Jewish American novelist Henry Bech. These, as Updike wrote, “do gain from being grouped,” and will be grouped in a later Library of America volume, together with the ten essay-stories of the 1970s known collectively as “Interviews with Insufficiently Famous Americans.” Included here, however, are “Snowing in Greenwich Village” (1956), the first Maples story, and “The Bulgarian Poetess” (1964), the first of the Bechs, on the (perhaps) shaky ground that when Updike wrote each of these stand-alone stories, he didn’t know he was beginning a short story cycle.
19Pablum
I'm curious why "Wife-Wooing" was included, while it's stated that only the first Maples story, "Snowing in Greenwich Village", is included. Yet this is the second Maples story.
20Pablum
In this interview, Christopher Carduff seems to confirm Updike novel volumes from LOA: http://authorlink.com/interview/john-updike-lives-on-in-new-story-collections/
21DCloyceSmith
>19 Pablum: "I'm curious why "Wife-Wooing" was included."
Both "Wife-wooing" and "Plumbing" were not considered Maples stories when they were originally written and published (even by Updike himself, it seems). The characters are not named in either story.
He first included them in 1979, years after they were written, in the original Maples short-story cycle, Too Far to Go. In the foreword to that collection, Updike writes, "To the fourteen Maples stories, I have added two that from internal evidence appear to take place in Richard Maple's mind." Two other pieces were added, a "fragment" and (in the 2009 collection) the later story "Grandparenting," to give us the final 18 Maples stories.
David
Both "Wife-wooing" and "Plumbing" were not considered Maples stories when they were originally written and published (even by Updike himself, it seems). The characters are not named in either story.
He first included them in 1979, years after they were written, in the original Maples short-story cycle, Too Far to Go. In the foreword to that collection, Updike writes, "To the fourteen Maples stories, I have added two that from internal evidence appear to take place in Richard Maple's mind." Two other pieces were added, a "fragment" and (in the 2009 collection) the later story "Grandparenting," to give us the final 18 Maples stories.
David
22euphorb
> 20 Unfortunately, I cannot hear audio over the Internet. Can you tell me what it is that Christopher Carduff says in this interview about Updike novel volumes from LOA? Which novels is he referring to? Thanks.
23DCloyceSmith
> 22 "Can you tell me what it is that Christopher Carduff says in this interview about Updike novel volumes from LOA"
He isn't specific, saying that "there will be future volumes covering his novels and other works." We haven't (to my knowledge) finalized the negotiations for the rights for anything else; securing the rights will be the major factor in determining when, and in what order, future volumes will appear.
I'm not sure what the plan is for the novels (or even if the plan has been finalized yet). As Chris mentioned in the interview on our blog, we do hope to collect in one volume the Maples stories, the Bech stories, and "Interviews with Insufficiently Famous Americans.”
David
He isn't specific, saying that "there will be future volumes covering his novels and other works." We haven't (to my knowledge) finalized the negotiations for the rights for anything else; securing the rights will be the major factor in determining when, and in what order, future volumes will appear.
I'm not sure what the plan is for the novels (or even if the plan has been finalized yet). As Chris mentioned in the interview on our blog, we do hope to collect in one volume the Maples stories, the Bech stories, and "Interviews with Insufficiently Famous Americans.”
David
24Pablum
David, would this third probable Updike volume include just the Maples, Bech, and the Interviews? Just sounds like a thinner volume than usual.
25Pablum
As for novel volumes (praying to God the rights all get squared away quickly, which I'm sure shouldn't be a problem seeing as how this short fiction set is such a sure hit), I can see it playing out this way:
Volume 1: The Rabbit Series
* Rabbit, Run (1960)
* Rabbit Redux (1971)
* Rabbit is Rich (1981)
* Rabbit at Rest (1990)
* Rabbit Remembered (2001)
Volume 2: Novels 1959-1968
*The Poorhouse Fair (1959)
* The Centaur (1963)
* Of the Farm (1965)
* Couples (1968)
Volume 3: 1970s Writings
* Buchanan Dying (1974)
* A Month of Sundays (1975)
* Marry Me (1976)
* The Coup (1978)
Volume 4: Novels 1984-1992
* The Witches of Eastwick (1984)
* Roger's Version (1986)
* S. (1988)
* Memories of the Ford Administration (1992)
Volume 5: Novels 1994-2000
* Brazil (1994)
* In the Beauty of the Lilies (1996)
* Toward the End of Time (1997)
* Gertrude and Claudius (2000)
Volume 6: Novels 2002-2008
* Seek My Face (2002)
* Villages (2004)
* Terrorist (2006)
* The Widows of Eastwick (2008)
Just as the Rabbit volume is a collective look at each decade ('50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, and '90s), so too are the other volume, if divided this way. Each would generally correspond to Updike's novel output in the '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, and 2000s, too.
Volume 1: The Rabbit Series
* Rabbit, Run (1960)
* Rabbit Redux (1971)
* Rabbit is Rich (1981)
* Rabbit at Rest (1990)
* Rabbit Remembered (2001)
Volume 2: Novels 1959-1968
*The Poorhouse Fair (1959)
* The Centaur (1963)
* Of the Farm (1965)
* Couples (1968)
Volume 3: 1970s Writings
* Buchanan Dying (1974)
* A Month of Sundays (1975)
* Marry Me (1976)
* The Coup (1978)
Volume 4: Novels 1984-1992
* The Witches of Eastwick (1984)
* Roger's Version (1986)
* S. (1988)
* Memories of the Ford Administration (1992)
Volume 5: Novels 1994-2000
* Brazil (1994)
* In the Beauty of the Lilies (1996)
* Toward the End of Time (1997)
* Gertrude and Claudius (2000)
Volume 6: Novels 2002-2008
* Seek My Face (2002)
* Villages (2004)
* Terrorist (2006)
* The Widows of Eastwick (2008)
Just as the Rabbit volume is a collective look at each decade ('50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, and '90s), so too are the other volume, if divided this way. Each would generally correspond to Updike's novel output in the '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s, and 2000s, too.
26Pablum
Then, of course, a volume or two for the poetry and however many for the non-fiction and other miscellanea.
29Pablum
http://blogs.iwu.edu/johnupdikesociety/2015/04/10/random-house-announces-john-up...
Not a big poetry fan but a LOA volume of all of Updike's poems would be very cool.
Not a big poetry fan but a LOA volume of all of Updike's poems would be very cool.
30Pablum
Hopefully some news on the complete novels is forthcoming. Meanwhile, this: http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/tip-sheet/article/6844...
31Podras.
There is an article just out on the LOA web site and on their Reader's Almanac page titled "Photos: Debut novelist Kevin Morris gives John Updike his “beautiful due”. The last paragraph has this interesting note about LOA's future plans:
Updike fans will be excited to learn that Library of America inaugurates a planned five-volume edition of his novels in 2018; the lead–off volume will include the first book in the Rabbit Angstrom saga, 1960’s Rabbit, Run.
32Pablum
YES! Above I worked out a six-volume series so I hope they don't leave anything off for a five-volume edition. I guess LOA is going in chronological order so the Rabbit novels will be spread out. Maybe David can shed a bit of light on this. But super excited about this news!
33Pablum
I guess if we're foregoing a Rabbit volume, it could then be condensed into five volumes thus (five neat decade collections, but these would be very fat books):
Volume 1: Early Novels (1959-1968)
*The Poorhouse Fair (1959)
* Rabbit, Run (1960)
* The Centaur (1963)
* Of the Farm (1965)
* Couples (1968)
Volume 2: 1970s Writings
* Rabbit Redux (1971)
* Buchanan Dying (1974)
* A Month of Sundays (1975)
* Marry Me (1976)
* The Coup (1978)
Volume 3: 1980s Novels
* Rabbit is Rich (1981)
* The Witches of Eastwick (1984)
* Roger's Version (1986)
* S. (1988)
Volume 4: 1990s Novels
* Rabbit at Rest (1990)
* Memories of the Ford Administration (1992)
* Brazil (1994)
* In the Beauty of the Lilies (1996)
* Toward the End of Time (1997)
Volume 5: 2000s Novels
* Gertrude and Claudius (2000)
* Seek My Face (2002)
* Villages (2004)
* Terrorist (2006)
* The Widows of Eastwick (2008)
Volume 1: Early Novels (1959-1968)
*The Poorhouse Fair (1959)
* Rabbit, Run (1960)
* The Centaur (1963)
* Of the Farm (1965)
* Couples (1968)
Volume 2: 1970s Writings
* Rabbit Redux (1971)
* Buchanan Dying (1974)
* A Month of Sundays (1975)
* Marry Me (1976)
* The Coup (1978)
Volume 3: 1980s Novels
* Rabbit is Rich (1981)
* The Witches of Eastwick (1984)
* Roger's Version (1986)
* S. (1988)
Volume 4: 1990s Novels
* Rabbit at Rest (1990)
* Memories of the Ford Administration (1992)
* Brazil (1994)
* In the Beauty of the Lilies (1996)
* Toward the End of Time (1997)
Volume 5: 2000s Novels
* Gertrude and Claudius (2000)
* Seek My Face (2002)
* Villages (2004)
* Terrorist (2006)
* The Widows of Eastwick (2008)
34euphorb
It's great news that the novels will be included soon. With the two volumes of short stories that will be most of the fiction, though there still remain the Bech stories and the Maples stories (only two of the latter were included in the short stories volumes) -- these should fill one additional volume, which I hope is forthcoming. And there is still a great quantity of nonfiction -- mainly essays, reviews, and criticism, which, if included in full, will require several additional volumes. Possibly these will be subject to selection, though I hope not. Then there is the poetry (another volume) and the memoir ("Self-Consciousness), as well as a play, various limited editions, and children's books. Perhaps David can shed some light on the long-term plans relating to the works of Updike.
37Pablum
I'm so happy! Six years later:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1598535811/
Library of America launches its definitive multi-volume edition of John Updike's novels with the four early works that signaled the arrival of the most gifted young novelist of the 1960s
John Updike had already made a name as a contributor of stories and poems to The New Yorker when, in January 1959, at the age of twenty-six, he published his first novel, The Poorhouse Fair, launching one of the most extraordinary literary careers in American letters. Now, Library of America inaugurates on a multi-volume edition of Updike's novels with this volume gathering his first four novels, including the landmark Rabbit, Run, chosen in 2010 by TIME Magazine one of the best 100 novels published in English since 1923. Set in the near future of 1978, The Poorhouse Fair stages a conflict between John Hook, a rebellious ninety-four-year-old former schoolteacher now a resident of a rural poorhouse, and young Mr. Conner, the utilitarian humanist who runs the facility, as an allegory of resistance in a world of systems and efficiencies. Updike's legendary rejoinder to Jack Kerouac's On the Road, Rabbit, Run (1960) introduces us to the author's most enduring protagonist, Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom, a onetime high-school basketball star who, on an impulse, deserts his wife and son, with tragic consequences. The Centaur, a comic-tragic father-son novel that mixes memory and myth, won the National Book Award for Fiction in 1964. The novella Of the Farm (1965) is one of Updike's loveliest performances, a kind of chamber music for four voices set during a single memorable weekend.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1598535811/
Library of America launches its definitive multi-volume edition of John Updike's novels with the four early works that signaled the arrival of the most gifted young novelist of the 1960s
John Updike had already made a name as a contributor of stories and poems to The New Yorker when, in January 1959, at the age of twenty-six, he published his first novel, The Poorhouse Fair, launching one of the most extraordinary literary careers in American letters. Now, Library of America inaugurates on a multi-volume edition of Updike's novels with this volume gathering his first four novels, including the landmark Rabbit, Run, chosen in 2010 by TIME Magazine one of the best 100 novels published in English since 1923. Set in the near future of 1978, The Poorhouse Fair stages a conflict between John Hook, a rebellious ninety-four-year-old former schoolteacher now a resident of a rural poorhouse, and young Mr. Conner, the utilitarian humanist who runs the facility, as an allegory of resistance in a world of systems and efficiencies. Updike's legendary rejoinder to Jack Kerouac's On the Road, Rabbit, Run (1960) introduces us to the author's most enduring protagonist, Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom, a onetime high-school basketball star who, on an impulse, deserts his wife and son, with tragic consequences. The Centaur, a comic-tragic father-son novel that mixes memory and myth, won the National Book Award for Fiction in 1964. The novella Of the Farm (1965) is one of Updike's loveliest performances, a kind of chamber music for four voices set during a single memorable weekend.
38Pablum
So with the first volume due out next week, can we have some hint as to the potential schedule of this edition? If it's four works per volume, it should take six to collect everything. Does that mean six years? And when would the various other volumes come out like the other stories not collected in the two Stories volumes? After the novels or interspersed throughout? And what of the other various writings? I know, lots of questions, sorry, but I love Updike's writing so much and it would be such a joy to have all of it collected in LOA volumes as it should be.
39Truett
PabloPablum: Gotta ask: Why no love for Bech? I know Updike said he was hesitant to use a writer as "hero", but the metafictional playfulness in them was just one of the things that -- in my humble -- made the Bech books some of Updike's best work. Yet you didn't include them in your "fantasy bookshelf line up" (sort of like the literary equivalent of fantasy football, perhaps). I would definitely toss out things like BUCHANAN DYING and TOWARD THE END OF TIME (one a play, which doesn't fit the novel format; the other, a lesser work) to include at least two of the Bech volumes; although, in truth, I think all three of the books, as well as the short story-cum-epilogue, "His Oeuvre", should be required reading when taking on Updike.
40Pablum
I didn't forget about Bech. I thought it was already said someone that since the Bech and Maples stories were omitted from the Collected Stories volumes (I suppose for being more serialized and thus more of a complete work each), they will appear in a separate volume along with other miscellanea. My list above was for novels only, or just longer works I suppose. There's still poetry and all the myriad of non-fiction.
42Pablum
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1598536494/
Library of America's definitive Updike edition continues with three masterful novels on the joys and the discontents of the sexual revolution
Here for the first time in one volume are three of John Updike's most essential novels--the scandalous Couples, the brilliant sequel Rabbit Redux, and the uproarious A Month of Sundays--which together form an unforgettable triptych of the social turbulence that roiled America from the Kennedy to the Nixon years. Written with the grace, verve, and style of one of literature's most sophisticated entertainers, these books not only reveal Updike's genius in characterization and his formal versatility as a novelist but also delve into the complexities of sex and marriage, social class and personal morality, and the difficult quandaries of the flesh and the spirit. As a special feature the volume also presents two short pieces that shed light on the novels and the tale "Couples: A Short Story," the origin of the novel of the same name, written in 1963 but deemed unsuitable for publication by The New Yorker.
Alas, no Buchanan...
Library of America's definitive Updike edition continues with three masterful novels on the joys and the discontents of the sexual revolution
Here for the first time in one volume are three of John Updike's most essential novels--the scandalous Couples, the brilliant sequel Rabbit Redux, and the uproarious A Month of Sundays--which together form an unforgettable triptych of the social turbulence that roiled America from the Kennedy to the Nixon years. Written with the grace, verve, and style of one of literature's most sophisticated entertainers, these books not only reveal Updike's genius in characterization and his formal versatility as a novelist but also delve into the complexities of sex and marriage, social class and personal morality, and the difficult quandaries of the flesh and the spirit. As a special feature the volume also presents two short pieces that shed light on the novels and the tale "Couples: A Short Story," the origin of the novel of the same name, written in 1963 but deemed unsuitable for publication by The New Yorker.
Alas, no Buchanan...
43Pablum
Very strange that Amazon has this at $45 with no percent off. Is there something wrong? I preordered the first novels volume at around $25 last time...
44jroger1
Amazon isn’t discounting it, but the LOA website lists it for $33.00.
https://www.loa.org/books/627-novels-1968-1975
https://www.loa.org/books/627-novels-1968-1975
45Truett
Pablo -- and any others keeping watch: I recently paid for a book on Amazon that cost $87.50 when I pre-ordered but now has been "jacked-up" in price to 101 dollars and change. Not quite a $20 mark up, but definitely within the price range difference between that of LOA and Amazon as regards the new Updike volume. Don't know if it's "just" a fluctuation that occurred at year's end, or if it's a sign of things to come as regards Amazon (considering how much Bezos is driven by pure greed, I wouldn't be surprised to learn it's the latter). Incidentally, the book is a brand new publication -- it's one of those OED size books, which explains the price.
46Pablum
Just saw on Amazon the next volume: https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-1978-1984-Witches-Eastwick/dp/159853677X/
John Updike: Novels 1978-1984 (LOA #339): The Coup / Rabbit Is Rich / The Witches of Eastwick
Question: why are the volumes skipping Marry Me (1976)? It's also stated this is volume three of five. But there are 12 novels remaining for the other two volumes. How would that break down?
John Updike: Novels 1978-1984 (LOA #339): The Coup / Rabbit Is Rich / The Witches of Eastwick
Question: why are the volumes skipping Marry Me (1976)? It's also stated this is volume three of five. But there are 12 novels remaining for the other two volumes. How would that break down?
47Truett
PabloPablum -- Not sure what the answer will be, but...they don't always publish ALL of an author's books. I was a bit bummed about some books that were skipped when Ross MacDonald's books were published by LOA -- a few his earlier books, and a couple of the later ones. Then I shrugged, and held onto the paperback copies I have. So it goes (to quote Vonnegut, whose nonfiction titles were given a pass).
48Pablum
I can understand omitting non-fiction or other non-novel books. But Marry Me is a novel. And when the Updike series launched it was billed as the "definitive multi-volume edition of John Updike’s novels". To me, definitive would suggest complete. Am I wrong?
https://www.loa.org/books/589-novels-1959-1965
https://www.loa.org/books/589-novels-1959-1965
49Truett
PabloPablum -- Okay, remember, I am _not_ trolling or otherwise. Merely playing Devil's Advocate, at most. Thing is: back when a lot of us old timers used to buy CD (or vinyl) albums --- actually, come to think of it; I still do -- because they represented what the artist him or herself thought of as the proper collection (instead of today's habit of music lovers downloading individual songs, etc.), well...the artist, or his or her record company, would often issue "The Best of" albums. And, more often than not, I -- or some other equally die-hard fan -- would want to scream at the skies: BEST of!?! But you didn't include (insert the title, or titles, of various songs).
After all, how can ANY-thing be called the "Best" when it fails(ed) to include _____ (yadda, yadda).
Apparently, ONE person's idea of "best" is too often different from another person's idea of same.
Best is not synonymous with complete.
Neither, for that matter, is "definitive".
Not being snarky or whatever. Just saying it's possible that --- for whatever reason (perhaps even something along the lines of the logic used when separating the Bech novels -- MARRY ME may not have made the cut as regards "definitive" in the eyes of whomever is "curating" the collection of LOA Updike novels. That said, it DID get some pretty damn great reviews. :)
After all, how can ANY-thing be called the "Best" when it fails(ed) to include _____ (yadda, yadda).
Apparently, ONE person's idea of "best" is too often different from another person's idea of same.
Best is not synonymous with complete.
Neither, for that matter, is "definitive".
Not being snarky or whatever. Just saying it's possible that --- for whatever reason (perhaps even something along the lines of the logic used when separating the Bech novels -- MARRY ME may not have made the cut as regards "definitive" in the eyes of whomever is "curating" the collection of LOA Updike novels. That said, it DID get some pretty damn great reviews. :)
50MichaelLOA
Truett & PabloPablum: Definitely would agree with PabloPablum that "definitive" strongly implies complete & would be misleading if not complete. The relevant comparison would seem to be Updike's contemporaries such as Philip Roth, Saul Bellow & Bernard Malamud, all of whom seem to be complete or heading towards complete editions. And given that we have had, or are getting, very minor works in the editions of Kerouac, Roth, LeGuin, and others, it's a reasonable assumption. I'm sure that David will address this at some point.
I believe that Updike was on the board, or an advisor to, LOA - it's entirely possible that he worked with them before his death to plan a New York Edition-type collection that omitted some novels (Henry James omitted Washington Square, The Europeans, and The Bostonians, among others, from his "definitive" edition, but people have scratched their heads at James' decisions ever since). On the other hand, a lot of late Updike got some very mixed to scathing reviews (and hey, so did a lot of late James!) In any case, it would be fun to know what goes into the decision to publish an author complete. Rights and financing more than anything, probably. Also possible that LOA is just doing a couple of big volumes of 5-6 novels each. If I remember right, many of the later novels were pretty short, and it would be correct for LOA to recognize that no one is going to want to pay $40 for three lousy late Updike novels. (I have a friend who is an excellent writer who considers Updike a 20th century master of the short story, but thinks that he wrote no entirely successful novel).
Anyway, not to provoke, just to agree that in LOA context, "definitive" implies complete. I've been buying LOA editions since the first half dozen came out in 1982, when I picked up Hawthorne's Tales & Sketches at an Encore Books in suburban Philly. Have subscribed for many years & have all of them up to last year (running a year behind in my subscription). I'm still waiting for volumes three and four of Hawthorne, as mentioned in the interior dust jacket of my first volume! That of course will never come, because who would possibly underwrite LOA publication of Hawthorne's journals today? People were so optimistic in 1982. LOA's mission has changed and I'm sure they do the best they can given rights & financing, but I'd just encourage them to continue to go complete when they can. (And I'm not an Updike fan - please don't publish his poetry!) Next on my LOA complete wish list? A full multi-volume Lewis & Clark (but that's probably a rights issue).
I believe that Updike was on the board, or an advisor to, LOA - it's entirely possible that he worked with them before his death to plan a New York Edition-type collection that omitted some novels (Henry James omitted Washington Square, The Europeans, and The Bostonians, among others, from his "definitive" edition, but people have scratched their heads at James' decisions ever since). On the other hand, a lot of late Updike got some very mixed to scathing reviews (and hey, so did a lot of late James!) In any case, it would be fun to know what goes into the decision to publish an author complete. Rights and financing more than anything, probably. Also possible that LOA is just doing a couple of big volumes of 5-6 novels each. If I remember right, many of the later novels were pretty short, and it would be correct for LOA to recognize that no one is going to want to pay $40 for three lousy late Updike novels. (I have a friend who is an excellent writer who considers Updike a 20th century master of the short story, but thinks that he wrote no entirely successful novel).
Anyway, not to provoke, just to agree that in LOA context, "definitive" implies complete. I've been buying LOA editions since the first half dozen came out in 1982, when I picked up Hawthorne's Tales & Sketches at an Encore Books in suburban Philly. Have subscribed for many years & have all of them up to last year (running a year behind in my subscription). I'm still waiting for volumes three and four of Hawthorne, as mentioned in the interior dust jacket of my first volume! That of course will never come, because who would possibly underwrite LOA publication of Hawthorne's journals today? People were so optimistic in 1982. LOA's mission has changed and I'm sure they do the best they can given rights & financing, but I'd just encourage them to continue to go complete when they can. (And I'm not an Updike fan - please don't publish his poetry!) Next on my LOA complete wish list? A full multi-volume Lewis & Clark (but that's probably a rights issue).
51Pablum
Looking at the remaining list of novels and with only two volumes in mind, I imagine the fourth volume would collect Roger's Version, S., and Rabbit at Rest (very long novel). Because S. is fairly short, perhaps it can also include Memories of the Ford Administration (which is a medium-length novel). At best, that leaves eight more novels for the final volume, and In the Beauty of the Lilies is a long one. Yes, the later novels are shorter but they're still around 300 pages each. I'm just a bit disheartened as a huge Updike fan that we're seemingly not getting a complete edition of his fiction. We got all the short stories and were promised a separate volume for the Bech and Maples stuff and other miscellany. But to omit actual full-length novels seems counter-intuitive to that.
52JacobHolt
>51 Pablum: I haven't ready every one of Updike's later novels, but I'm of the opinion that In the Beauty of the Lillies stands with the best of his works and that no edition could be considered "definitive" without it.
53Podras.
>50 MichaelLOA:, et. al. LOA has just formally announced the third volume of Updike's novels and has described their eventually to be 5-volume set as a "selected edition". I don't recall how it has been described in earlier announcements, but that pretty clearly says that not all of his novels will be included.
54Pablum
"Selected" is being used for the first time, I believe. Every other book, including the short stories volumes, all referred to it as the "definitive" edition:
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-Collected-Stories-Library/dp/1598532510/
"The Library of America presents the first of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 102 classic stories that chart Updike’s emergence as America’s foremost practitioner of the short story, “our second Hawthorne,” as Philip Roth described him. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time."
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-Collected-Stories-Library/dp/1598532529/
"The Library of America presents the second of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 84 classic stories that display the virtuosic command of character, dialogue, and sensual description that was Updike’s signature.. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time."
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-1959-1965-Poorhouse-Centaur/dp/1598535811/
"Library of America launches its definitive multi-volume edition of John Updike's novels with the four early works that signaled the arrival of one of the most gifted young novelists of the 1960s."
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-1968-1975-Couples-Sundays/dp/1598536494/
"Library of America's definitive Updike edition continues with three masterful novels on the joys and the discontents of the sexual revolution"
I'm really heartbroken. To not have a complete edition of Updike seems... wrong. What happened? David?
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-Collected-Stories-Library/dp/1598532510/
"The Library of America presents the first of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 102 classic stories that chart Updike’s emergence as America’s foremost practitioner of the short story, “our second Hawthorne,” as Philip Roth described him. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time."
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-Collected-Stories-Library/dp/1598532529/
"The Library of America presents the second of two volumes in its definitive Updike collection. Here are 84 classic stories that display the virtuosic command of character, dialogue, and sensual description that was Updike’s signature.. Based on new archival research, each story is presented in its final definitive form and in order of composition, established here for the first time."
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-1959-1965-Poorhouse-Centaur/dp/1598535811/
"Library of America launches its definitive multi-volume edition of John Updike's novels with the four early works that signaled the arrival of one of the most gifted young novelists of the 1960s."
https://www.amazon.com/John-Updike-1968-1975-Couples-Sundays/dp/1598536494/
"Library of America's definitive Updike edition continues with three masterful novels on the joys and the discontents of the sexual revolution"
I'm really heartbroken. To not have a complete edition of Updike seems... wrong. What happened? David?
55Truett
PabloPablum: First, remember: few -- if any -- authors have had ALL of their writings published when LOA puts out a series of volumes containing their works. At least not right away. Hell, even Melville _just_ had his poetry published.
Second, regardless of how you and MichaelLOA choose to interpret the language...
Definitive (adj):done or reached decisively and with authority.
...and...
Complete (adj):having all the necessary or appropriate parts.
--------
I think we can all agree that one man's "necessary" is another man' extraneous.
So, don't be too harsh on David. :)
Second, regardless of how you and MichaelLOA choose to interpret the language...
Definitive (adj):done or reached decisively and with authority.
...and...
Complete (adj):having all the necessary or appropriate parts.
--------
I think we can all agree that one man's "necessary" is another man' extraneous.
So, don't be too harsh on David. :)
56Pablum
No no, I'm not, just looking for some clarity. It felt at the outset that LOA was very much following the Roth model with Updike volumes, at least to me.
58Pablum
I'm still holding out hope that after the five volumes of the "selected works" are out, the remaining "lesser" works would eventually be collected as well. We have the complete Roth. Like I said earlier, not having all of Updike's fiction collected feels wrong...
I'm just hoping for some official word from LOA as to the change in plans, because as I pointed out above, it always sounded like the Updike edition would indeed be a complete works.
I'm just hoping for some official word from LOA as to the change in plans, because as I pointed out above, it always sounded like the Updike edition would indeed be a complete works.
59JacobHolt
As mentioned in another thread in this group, the fourth volume is listed on Amazon as containing Roger's Version and Rabbit at Rest. That means the only novels that have been skipped are Marry Me and S., leaving nine novels that could appear in a fifth volume.
60Pablum
So now with the final Updike volume showing up on Amazon, we know these novels aren't being included:
Marry Me (1977)
S. (1988)
Memories of the Ford Administration (1992)
Brazil (1994)
Toward the End of Time (1997)
Seek My Face (2002)
Villages (2004)
Terrorist (2006)
The Widows of Eastwick (2008)
It's really sad that we couldn't have a complete set of all of Updike's fiction. Maybe LOA could 2-3 additional volumes later?
Marry Me (1977)
S. (1988)
Memories of the Ford Administration (1992)
Brazil (1994)
Toward the End of Time (1997)
Seek My Face (2002)
Villages (2004)
Terrorist (2006)
The Widows of Eastwick (2008)
It's really sad that we couldn't have a complete set of all of Updike's fiction. Maybe LOA could 2-3 additional volumes later?
61Pablum
It's really unfortunate that LOA stopped at 2000 with Updike. Another 2 or 3 volumes would have collected all of his novel. I'm still baffled at why that was the choice. Earlier in this thread there was news from David how the Bech and Maples stories were held back for a separate volume, so I hope further volumes of novels aren't off the table either.
