4 replies to this topic

[dirac]

John Fowles, the author of The Collector, The French Lieutenant's Woman, et al., has died, age 79.  

Obituary in The Guardian.



Another obit, by Sarah Lyall for The New York Times.

[redbookish]

Oh, how sad ... and 79 is not really that old nowadays. I can take or leave The French Lieutenant's Woman, but I found The Magus infuriating & fascinating ...

[GWTW]

I love John Fowles and his conceits - I read The Magus when I was in high school so I found it purely fascinating. Had I been older, I would have been infuriated too. In addition, I learnt a lot about my father from reading The Magus (although he is much younger than John Fowles/Nicolas Urfe and their life stories completely different).
Another favourite of mine is The Ebony Tower, a collection of short stories, which one the one hand, show off his range and yet, focus on the same themes that crop up in almost all his work.

[sandik]

The Magus was one of the first books I recognized as being for adults -- it's been years, but I can still see the cover of the copy my mother was reading.

[dirac]

The Magus drove me nuts but I enjoyed it.  The French Lieutenant's Woman is a favorite of mine, and I like The Collector too.  Daniel Martin, I fear, was chloroform......