News Summary

• John Updike wrote more than 25,000 letters and missive-like jottings over his lifetime.
• The most common topic of discussion in them is either the books he’s writing or the detailed things that happened to him in life that, eventually (if they tested well enough on the rudimentary epistolary page) could eventually be turned into more books.
• The longest letters, especially those to his family, don’t respond to problems, or attempt to resolve conflicts, or even address the practicalities of replacing screen doors.