The John Updike Audio Collection

The short stories of John Updike were taken from some of his earlier works. There seems to be a regular theme of middle-age adults being bored with their likes and seeking something. Often an affair, a reminiscing of the past or perhaps being upset with the youth of the day. The only one that stuck for me was one about a swimming pool. A family put in a pool. They enjoyed it a lot at first. However, they seemed to use it less as their marriage fell apart. They both moved to separate places, yet kept the house and made sure the pool stayed in order. At first a few neighbor kids snuck in. Then out of obligation, the neighbors joined in. Eventually it became a large community meeting place. Alas, the husband noticed this when he came to visit the house. They eventually sold the house, with the new owners filling in the pool to keep the house safe from their children. The "bad" circumstances ended up being great for the community. However, the individual priorities end up kabashing the community good. It is an interesting take on community property.