{"title":"John Updike","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eJohn Updike\u003c\/strong\u003e offers a rich tapestry of American life through his masterful storytelling. His works range from intimate memoirs like \u003cem\u003eA Life in Letters\u003c\/em\u003e to incisive explorations of middle-class existence in novels such as \u003cem\u003eRabbit, Run\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eRabbit is Rich\u003c\/em\u003e. Expect sharp character studies and a keen eye for the complexities of everyday experience.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBeyond fiction, Updike's writing often delves into personal reflection and nuanced portraits of community, as seen in titles like \u003cem\u003eA Month of Sundays\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eVillages\u003c\/em\u003e. His varied oeuvre blends eloquence and insight, capturing the interplay of ordinary lives with profound themes.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"rabbit-is-rich","title":"Rabbit is Rich","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSet against the backdrop of the late 1970s, \u003cem\u003eRabbit is Rich\u003c\/em\u003e by John Updike continues the story of Harry \"Rabbit\" Angstrom, a man who finds himself at a crossroads in life. No longer the restless youth of earlier novels, Rabbit has settled into middle age with all its trappings of comfort and success. He serves as the Chief Sales Representative and co-owner of Springer Motors, a successful car dealership, and enjoys the material wealth that his position affords him. Rabbit's days are marked by good suits, a steady influx of cash, and a trim wife who divides her time between their home and the country club.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHowever, peace of mind proves elusive for Rabbit. As he reflects on his life, he is besieged by a sense of discontent and lingering regret. Despite achieving the American Dream, he is haunted by the choices he didn't make and the possibilities that have slipped through his fingers. The novel delves into Rabbit's complex psyche as he grapples with his past decisions and contemplates the paths not taken.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eUpdike masterfully captures the zeitgeist of the era, portraying the economic anxieties and social changes that define 1970s America. Through Rabbit’s interactions with his family, friends, and community, the novel explores themes of fulfilment, identity, and the inexorable passage of time. Rabbit's internal struggles are poignantly rendered, making his journey both a personal and universal exploration of human experience.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith its keen psychological insight and vivid portrayal of suburban life, \u003cem\u003eRabbit is Rich\u003c\/em\u003e offers a rich tapestry of characters and emotions, inviting readers to ponder the true cost of the lives they lead and the dreams they leave behind.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45641141027052,"sku":"9780141188553","price":32.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780141188553.jpg?v=1724552029"},{"product_id":"rabbit-run-by-john-updike-9780141187839","title":"Rabbit, Run","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eRabbit, Run\u003c\/em\u003e marks its first time in Modern Classics.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt's 1959 and Harry 'Rabbit' Angstrom, once a high school sports superstar, finds himself going nowhere. At twenty-six, he is trapped in a second-rate existence—stuck with a fragile, alcoholic wife, a house full of overflowing ashtrays and discarded glasses, a young son, and a futile job.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith no way to fix things, he resolves to flee from his family and his home in Pennsylvania, embarking on a thousand-mile journey that he hopes will liberate him from his mediocre life. Because, as he knows all too well, \"after you've been first-rate at something, no matter what, it kind of takes the kick out of being second-rate\".\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Gardners Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46071792238828,"sku":"9780141187839","price":29.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780141187839.jpg?v=1736064866"},{"product_id":"a-month-of-sundays-by-john-updike-9780141189000","title":"A Month of Sundays","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNew to PMC\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Month of Sundays\u003c\/em\u003e, Updike's seventh novel, concerns a month of seven days, a period of enforced rest and recreation as experienced by the Reverend Tom Marshfield. He is sent west from his Midwestern church in disgrace.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46457466618092,"sku":"9780141189000","price":32.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/6691983482238.jpg?v=1747741309"},{"product_id":"the-witches-of-eastwick-by-john-updike-9780141045603","title":"The Witches of Eastwick","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe air of Eastwick breeds witches — women whose powerful longings can stir up thunderstorms and fracture domestic peace. Jane, Alexandra, and Sukie, divorced and dangerous, have formed a coven. Into the void of Eastwick breezes Darryl Van Horne, a charismatic magus of a man who entrances the trio. This is Updike at his most mischievous.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Witches of Eastwick\u003c\/em\u003e showcases a mesmerising tale where magic and desire intertwine with extraordinary consequences.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46496461062380,"sku":"9780141045603","price":15.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/5258013482238.jpg?v=1748499252"},{"product_id":"villages-by-john-updike-9780241983799","title":"Villages","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA stunningly sensuous novel from the bestselling John Updike, published as a Penguin Essential for the first time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eVillages\u003c\/i\u003e chronicles Owen Mackenzie's life story, which is rich with sin and seduction, domesticity and debauchery. His marriage to his college sweetheart is swiftly followed by his first betrayal, leading him into a series of affairs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOwen's pursuit of happiness, traversing a succession of small towns from Pennsylvania to Massachusetts, pushes him to the brink of chaos. It is from this precipice that he is saved by a rescue, albeit one that carries its own fatal price.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46556720955628,"sku":"9780241983799","price":45.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780241983799.jpg?v=1750214755"},{"product_id":"a-life-in-letters-by-john-updike-9780241707586","title":"A Life in Letters","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe arc of literary giant John Updike's life emerges in these luminous daily letters to family, friends, editors, and lovers – a remarkable outpouring over six decades, from his earliest consciousness as a writer to his final days.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the words of his contemporary, Philip Roth, John Updike was 'Our time's greatest man of letters – as brilliant a literary critic and essayist as he was a novelist and short-story writer'.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOver the course of his long and immensely productive career, he also proved himself a brilliant correspondent, his letters filled with comic observations, opinions, and personal news, told in his characteristically elegant and exquisitely fluid style.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn this sparkling selection of his letters, edited by James Schiff, we can see Updike in real time, capturing every stage of his unspooling life, from Pennsylvania farm boy to Pulitzer prizewinner; and from young father negotiating his first book contract to the bestselling writer he became, following the international success of his novels \u003cem\u003eCouples\u003c\/em\u003e and the \u003cem\u003eRabbit\u003c\/em\u003e sequence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHere are letters to family, friends, editors, and lovers, a remarkable outpouring over six decades – including, most movingly perhaps, the letters of his final year bidding farewell to children, colleagues, and friends.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTaken together, these missives make a page-turning 'life in letters' like no other – an intimate testament to one of the greatest of all American writers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47288345526508,"sku":"9780241707586","price":110.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/d66f11c1c7bc2151bedf0fef6197568e.jpg?v=1770634462"},{"product_id":"rabbit-run-by-john-updike-9780141037523","title":"Rabbit, Run","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eJohn Updike's \u003cem\u003eRabbit, Run\u003c\/em\u003e is a classic story of dissatisfaction and restlessness. Harry 'Rabbit' Angstrom was a star basketball player in high school. Now twenty-six, his life seems full of traps, the biggest being his pregnant wife and two-year-old son. He sets out to escape, but it's not clear if Rabbit is really following his heart or only chasing his tail.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePowerfully written, \u003cem\u003eRabbit, Run\u003c\/em\u003e gave American literature one of its most enduring characters.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House Distribution","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47487473385708,"sku":"9780141037523","price":16.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780141037523-rabbit-run.jpg?v=1775740200"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/john-updike.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}