Rabbit, Run is the first in a series of four novels by the American author John Updike about middle-class American life in the middle and late 1900’s. The novel was published in 1960 and revised in 1964 and 1970. The other novels in the series are Rabbit Redux (1971); Rabbit Is Rich (1981), which won the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for fiction; and Rabbit at Rest (1990), which won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for fiction.
The “Rabbit” of the title is Harry Angstrom. He received the nickname “Rabbit” while a star basketball player at his high school in the small Pennsylvania town of Brewer. The novels portray Angstrom as he struggles with an unhappy marriage and his own search for a satisfying life. Each novel is set in a later decade in Angstrom’s life, starting when he is 26 years old and concluding with his death.
In Rabbit, Run, Angstrom is a young man dealing with a difficult relationship with his alcoholic and pregnant wife, Janice, and an unrewarding job. The book’s title comes from Angstrom’s decision to flee from the family responsibilities represented by Janice and their 3-year-old son, Nelson.
Rabbit Redux takes place 10 years after the first novel. Angstrom is still struggling with his marriage, temporarily losing his wife to another man. Angstrom becomes involved with the radical political scene of the late 1960’s as he confronts such issues as drug use, the Vietnam War (1957-1975), and racial violence.
In Rabbit Is Rich, Angstrom and his wife have assumed a place in the high society of their town as he takes over his late father-in-law’s automobile dealership in Brewer. In middle age, Angstrom is wealthy but remains spiritually unfulfilled.
In Rabbit at Rest, Angstrom and his wife are still battling as he reaches retirement. Nelson, their son, now runs the automobile dealership. Angstrom has a brief affair with his son’s wife and finally dies of a heart attack.
Updike continued the story in the short novel Rabbit Remembered (2000), which takes place 10 years after Angstrom’s death.
See also Updike, John.
