Book Review: The Women Who Got Away

Book #87

“You used what you had here. People had so little material goods they had to take pleasure just in being alive.” — John Updike, Licks of Love in the Heart of the Cold War 

I wish I’d made notes when I read this book, but I read it out in the garden, leaving my phone and my notebook behind. It’s a short read — five short stories — and it was a pleasant afternoon. Unfortunately, it means that since this was read almost six or seven weeks ago, the specifics have slipped my mind.

From what I understand of Updike (this is my first foray into his work), affairs, sexual incompetence and relationships feature frequently in his work. It’s no different here. The writing is felt a lot more sparse than I expected, although I liked the effect some of the economy of language provoked. One thing I didn’t appreciate was how lacking his women were compared to how developed his male characters were. 

The stories were interesting, though, and I am curious to read more of his work. I’m just not on the edge of my seat.