A Life in Letters

One of the greatest American writers of the 20th century . . . Brilliant, riveting and essential for anyone remotely interested in Updike; shockingly salacious enough to enthral the remotely curious; and cleverly annotated for easy reading . . . The best letters are those to his wives in the 1970s, where you realise that Updike's greatness as a writer lies not in his much-lauded descriptive powers, nor in his ability to weave arcane areas of computer science or theology into his fiction, but in his ruthlessly honest psychological acuity, as he lays himself bare - right down to admitting he likes to beat his wife's lover at golf The Times