John Updike was an award-winning novelist, short story writer, poet and critic, often considered one of the United States’ greatest writers. Updike’s writing has been praised for its complex and dynamic characterization, unique style of prose, handling of challenges faced by everyday Americans, and deliberate craftsmanship.
His best-known work is the series of novels he wrote about the life of Harry “Rabbit” Angstrom. Two of them, Rabbit is Rich and Rabbit at Rest won the Pulitzer Prize, making Updike one of only three authors, along with Booth Tarkington and William Faulkner, to win the Pulitzer more than once. Rabbit is Rich won the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award; Rabbit at Rest won the National Book Critics Circle Award. Another novel in that series, Rabbit, Run, was named one of the 100 Greatest Novels by TIME Magazine and won the National Book Award.
During his long and prolific career, Updike published more than 20 novels, several short story collections, numerous works of art and literary criticism, several collections of poetry, and even children’s books. His work also often appeared in publications like The New Yorker. For his work, Updike received numerous awards including the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, National Medal of Arts, National Humanities Medal, Rea Award for the Short Story, the O. Henry Prize, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He was also selected to present the Jefferson Lecture in 2008 by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Updike received honorary doctorates from both Dartmouth and Harvard.