My Father's Tears and Other Stories (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Updike compresses the strata of a life in his delicately rendered, tremendously moving posthumous collection. In Free, the memory of a life-affirming affair buckles against a man's loyalty to his deceased wife: he recognizes that becoming a well-bred stick offers more consolation in old age than the sluggish arousal of his sensuality. In The Accelerating Expansion of the Universe, the retired protagonist, depressed by what he perceives as the universe's indifference to human affairs, is done in by the accumulated detritus of his life. Many characters are haunted by a sense of isolation, such as the protagonist of Personal Archaeology, who roams his Massachusetts estate, searching for traces of previous ownership while sifting through his own petty contribution, or the emotionally stranded absentee landlord of an Alton, Pa., family farm in The Road Home, who returns after 50 years and finds himself lost in his hometown. From Kinderszenen, which depicts the anxious time of smalltown late 1930s, to Varieties of Religious Experience, in which a grandfather watches the twin towers fall, time ushers in brutal changes. With masterly assurance, Updike transforms the familiar into the mysterious. (June)
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From School Library Journal

Starred Review. In the title story of this miraculous final collection, the aging narrator admits, "I have never really left Pennsylvania, that is where the self I value is stored, no matter how infrequently I check on its condition." Most of these stories evoke Updike's Olinger and environs at least in passing, nicely complementing the 2003 retrospective collection The Early Stories, 1953–1975, with its tantalizing hints of autobiography. In "Personal Archaeology," a restless retiree uncovers several distinct strata of rusty junk on his small piece of suburban land and realizes that his own lost golf balls will form yet another such layer. In "The Full Glass," an elderly man takes pride in his efficient bedroom routines, such as filling a glass with water before opening the pill bottles. In "Free," a recent widower starts to miss the wife from whom he had longed to escape. A few of the stories take place at high school reunions, where conversations resume midstream after 50 years. Like his ancient characters, Updike rambles on at times, but no one will complain. Recommended for all collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 2/1/09.]—Edward B. St John, Loyola Law Sch. Lib., Los Angeles
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; First Edition, First Printing edition (June 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307271560
• ISBN-13: 978-0307271563
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #21,034 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars All Readers Should Cherish This Latest Collection, June 9, 2009

By	Bookreporter.com (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

MY FATHER'S TEARS is the last in a sterling lineup of stories from the master storyteller John Updike, who passed away in January 2009. With 18 tales in all, the book has a wide range of characters, themes, times and settings. But all of them have a common thread --- that of delving into the human spirit and capturing the emotion of the moment. And they were previously published in various magazines, including The Atlantic Monthly, Harper's and The New Yorker.

Most of the main characters are male, but there are some of the female persuasion. Themes include aging, reminiscing, love lost and religion, among others. Times range from the Depression era to that of the modern-day world. Updike uses some fictional places in Pennsylvania to mirror those of his hometown of Shillington. The settings also include the state of Florida and such exotic locales as India, Spain, Italy and Morocco

The first story, titled "Morocco," takes place in that country and is based on a true story from events that occurred there in 1969. "The Walk with Elizanne" revolves around a high school reunion where two former high school sweethearts meet up after 50 years. A young child is the main character of three entries: "The Guardians," "The Laughter of the Gods" and "Kinderszenen." Love and its imperfections are the themes of "Free," "Delicate Wives," "The Apparition," and "Outage."

An interesting and sobering piece, "Variations of Religious Experience," explores the concept of religion and how it affects our thoughts and actions. The story centers on the horrific events of 9/11 and is told from the perspectives of a man watching the Twin Towers collapse from a distance as he looks out an apartment window, one of the hijackers who flies his jet into a tower, an office worker who is trapped in one of the towers and leaps to his death, and a passenger on the doomed plane that crashes in Pennsylvania. Each views his religion (or lack thereof) differently, and their reactions are varied as the events unfold.

Prior to reading this volume of short stories, my exposure to Updike's writings had been limited to a couple of volumes from the Rabbit series. Dedicated fans will enjoy MY FATHER'S TEARS, while newcomers can expand their enjoyment by perusing the many other short stories and novels he has produced. All readers should cherish this latest collection as it will be the last by this renowned and prolific author, unless new ones are discovered posthumously.

--- Reviewed by Christine M. Irvin

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Endings, June 29, 2009

By	Edward Aycock (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

I'm more of a fan of Updike's short stories than his novels so "My Father's Tears" is tailor made for me.

Updike's last three published works- the novel "The Widows of Eastwick," his collection of poems "Endpoint" and this short story collection- all have the air of finality to them. They were musings on growing older, losing friends and coming to the end of one's life journey. But rather than being depressing, they are melancholy without being maudlin.

"My Father's Tears" is, with the exception of the first story, a collection of tales published after 2000. "Morocco," first published in the 70s, is a travelogue of the small, but not catastrophic, pitfalls that befall a family as they travel in a foreign land. The book then fast forwards through the decades; the characters in these late tales are trapped by their own personal histories, facing the dilemma that occurs when they realize that there isn't much more time ahead of them and the past weighs them down even though they realize it's futile to mourn the mistakes they once made.

One of my favorite tales in this collection is "Personal Archaeology," which manages to be affecting and sad while making me realize that once we're gone, things just continue. "My Father's Tears" is a great final story collection. I feel guilty for wanting anything more from Updike as he was more than prolific in his long career. RIP.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Father's Tears, July 8, 2009

By	J. Stallings "Jim Stallings" (San Antonio, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Updike left us readers of his fiction with a final volume of short stories and poetry. "My Father's Tears" takes us on his final decade through the medium of the short story. This is a must read for his fans and highly recommended for a fiction reader wanting to discover one of the great masters of fiction in the past fifty years.