Remembering Philip Roth
Essential reads celebrate the author’s work.
Philip Roth, who died Tuesday in Manhattan at age 85, was one of the preeminent American literary figures of the 20th and 21st centuries. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award and many other awards, Roth painted on a wide canvas, delving (often with sharp humor) into politics, sex, and Jewish identity and anti-Semitism in his fiction.
Here are five of his best-known and most important books:
1. The Plot Against America (2004)
This prescient alternative historical novel suddenly became part of the conversation during and after the 2016 presidential election. Roth imagines a world in which aviator Charles Lindbergh, an isolationist known for his “America First” anti-war slogan, is elected president and appeases Nazi Germany. A terrific read, whatever your politics.
2. American Pastoral (1997)
Roth won the Pulitzer for this novel about homegrown terrorism. The protagonist is Swede Levov, a New Jersey high school athlete who grows up to inherit his father’s glove factory. His American idyll is shattered when his beloved daughter turns radical. Ewan McGregor played Swede in the 2016 film adaptation, with Dakota Fanning playing his daughter.
3. The Ghost Writer (1979)
This is the novel where Roth introduces his alter ego, Nathan Zuckerman, who returns in Zuckerman Unboundand other works. In The Ghost Writer, it’s the 1950s, and Zuckerman is a naïve, budding writer who gets a wakeup call when he meets his literary idol.
4. Goodbye, Columbus (1959)
Roth’s first book got him noticed and then some. The independentminded Neil Klugman and daddy’s girl Brenda Patimkin, a prototypical “Jewish American princess,” become lovers. Happy ending not guaranteed. A decade later, it became a movie starring Richard Benjamin and Ali MacGraw.
5. Portnoy’s Complaint (1969)
Made headlines during its time for its frank depiction of masturbation and frustrated sexuality; it’s the work that for many years most defined Roth. The humorous novel is told by “a lust-ridden, mother-addicted young Jewish bachelor” confessing to his analyst. Richard Benjamin returned to play another lead Roth role in the 1972 movie version.