This morning we were notified of Brook Stephenson’s sudden passing. A frequent contributor to Review, Brook was a tenacious writer with a generous spirit. He had a fierce love for books and worked to educate others of their power and importance in our world. Shine bright, Brook—we will miss you dearly.

“I decided to write or perish. It was like starting life from scratch.” —James Salter, June 10, 1925 - June 19, 2015 [Photo via AP]

“Literature will lose, sunlight will win, don’t worry.” —Franz Wright, March 18, 1953 - May 14, 2015 [Photo by Elizabeth Oehlkers Wright]

“Clutter is the disease of American writing. We are a society strangling in unnecessary words, circular constructions, pompous frills and meaningless jargon.” —William Zinsser, October 7, 1922 - May 12, 2015 [Photo of the author and Pirates pitching coach Ray Miller in 1989, via]