John Updike's writing pretty much always deserves five stars, I think. I'm giving this book four because, unlike the Rabbit novels, I don't think I'll return to it again and again -- and I'm not totally sure how I feel about the ending yet.

I have yet to meet an Updike character I really like, but I think I have yet to find one I hate, too. The truth in his novels is uncomfortable and it's almost easy to hate them for it; they're not uplifting by any means, but there's something so undeniably familiar in all of them. And God, could this man write perfect sentences.

Anyway, Terrorist is incredibly interesting and thought-provoking and it's clear to me that Updike stretched himself a bit for this one, which is commendable near the end of such a long and laudable writing career. It's one I'd love to actually talk about with people.