John Updike's The Witches of Eastwick

I decided to read The Witches of Eastwick because of how often the entertainment industry tries to recreate the story on the screen and almost always fails. With that in mind I thought to myself, “This is going to be a crazy, fantastical novel with witches, maybe a warlock or devil, what an adventure. Eastwick has a magic pull that releases a woman’s femininity and craft.” However, after reading it I can tell you that I was disappointed and almost appalled at the book.

John Updike has a great voice and way of writing. Updike creates a picturesque landscape with vivid descriptions and a grittiness that you can almost feel in your teeth, with characters that are riddled with flaws and almost unbearably selfish. Updike gives us expert, sparkling double meaning descriptions and dialog that furthers the women’s movement. That said I could not identify, feel sorry for, or even cheer on the three main witches of Eastwick this novel focuses its story on (Suki, Jane and Alexandra). Beyond that I did not even like Suki, Jane , Alexandra and Darrell Van Horne. The story is about them so that tells you something. I was also sad that there was not much of a focus or storyline regarding the witchyness of the witches. It was like Updike wanted them to be witches so he could add in this one horrible plot twist (not giving you the spoiler) and could not figure out how to do it without using the craft.

I would recommend this book to readers who want to read a more classic novel or books that have an almost feminine mystique meets 19^th century writing meets beatnik dialog.  As a side note, I just watched the movie The Witches of Eastwick with Jack Nicholson, Cher, Susan Sarandon and Michelle Pfeifer. I enjoyed it much more than the novel. The witches were not as selfish, Darrel Van Horne was the devil I wanted him to be, and it had the comedy and fantastical characters I wanted to read that I think Updike just missed the mark on.