John Updike (1932-2009)

Despite the fact that he wrote with a stylish turn of phrase; despite the fact that he wrote an enormous amount; and despite the fact that he was so popular in his own lifetime, I suspect that John Updike, who died today, will now suffer the same slow loss of critical reputation as his formerly highly-rated predecessors Hemingway, Faulkner, and Mailer. The more interesting question is, whose critical reputation will rise, to fill the space vacated?