Farewell, Elmer Kelton

Some folks argue that the Western story as a separate genre is dead, or at least dying, and will before too long be just a subgenre of Historical Fiction. With the passing of Elmer Kelton last Saturday, that prediction is sadly one step closer to becoming true. Kelton was a writer of Western stories that [...]

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Farewell, E. Lynn Harris

In many ways, E. Lynn Harris was the breakout writer who moved African-American fiction from the “literature” shelves to the popular collection.  He took on topics like homosexuality, class, and family secrets, finding the universality in those themes even as he expressed the conflict they bring to African-Americans.
He also placed his characters in a settings [...]

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Farewell, John Updike

I firmly believe that we respond to books based on the times in our lives when we encounter them.  A book that you don’t get in high school suddenly triggers an “a-ha” moment in your late twenties.  Or a book you loved in your late twenties leaves you cold when you reread it on your [...]

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Farewell, John Mortimer

Mystery readers the world over should raise a glass Château Thames Embankment tonight in memory of John Mortimer, creator of the inestimable barrister, Rumpole of the Bailey. Ostensibly crime novels, Mortimer’s tales went far beyond the basics of solving a mystery. They offered a peek into the lives of a fascinating and delightful cast of [...]

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Farewell, Donald Westlake

The new year in the literary world starts off with the sad news of the death of Donald Westlake. One of crime fiction’s most prolific writers, Westlake produced nearly 100 crime novels under his own name and three pseudonyms, Richard Stark, Tucker Coe, and John B. Allan. He also wrote occasional science fiction as  Curt [...]

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Farewell, Michael Crichton

Michael Crichton was good at what he did. He could plunge readers into unfamiliar territory, give them enough details to be comfortable, then spin an entertaining story. He also had the facility of releasing his books seemingly in sync with news headlines, even if he’d been researching and writing for a couple of [...]

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Farewell, Studs Terkel

Radio host, agitator, and oral historian Studs Terkel died today at the age of 96.  He had a good long life, and used it to do much that illuminated the world around him.  Best of all, he put a microphone in front of ordinary people and gently pulled from them the extraordinary stories each of [...]

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Farewell, Tony Hillerman

I spent some portion of my twenties traveling in the American Southwest, and came to love the broad vistas, the muted sage-greens of the vegetation, the craggy mountains, and the star-filled night skies. New Mexico is one of the few places I ever considered as a possible alternative to living in Virginia (Virginia won out). [...]

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Farewell, Alexandr Solzhenitsyn

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich is probably the best-known work of Russian author, activist, and exile Alexandr Solzhenitsyn. I can’t say ‘best loved’ because his stark depiction of life in a Soviet gulag is revelatory and deeply unsettling. And yet Ivan Denisovich himself represents a daily triumph over those who would imprison [...]

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Farewell, William W. Warner

A couple of memories from my childhood: going to the shore of the Chesapeake at Virginia Beach and seeing crabbers breaking yellow egg casings from the backs of the females’ backs, tossing the eggs back in the water and throwing the crabs into water boiling over an open fire. (Even at 10 years [...]

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