Happy Philip Roth day, as today–the 80th birthday of the pride of Newark–might well be called, with the writer’s hometown hosting a Philip Roth bus tour, highlighting locations mentioned in his novels, and the man himself giving a by-invitation-only talk at the Newark Museum. And Roth has been the buzz of the Internet, with his name trending on Twitter all day–the highest honor of the Internet age. Check out author Eric Wasserman’s 2012 piece about his spring break with Philip Roth and the influence Roth’s novel The Counterlife had on Wasserman’s budding writerly ambitions: “The Counterlife also did something for me that I doubt any other work of fiction would have. It freed me from my inhibition to address Jewish themes. It gave me the courage to be fearless in being an unapologetic “Jewish writer.” It especially encouraged me to speak to Jewish readers and say: You may think you understand things but I’ll make you never think about them the same again.”
Happy Birthday, Philip Roth!
