We're saddened to learn that writer John Gregory Dunne has died at 71. While we enjoyed his books a lot, his wife, Joan Didion, has been our favorite author for the past 30 years--since we first read Play it As it Lays in 1972. Our condolences to Ms. Didion--and to Mr. Dunne's brother, author Dominick Dunne.

The grandson of an Irish immigrant, Dunne often focused on the Irish-American experience, particularly in his novel ``True Confessions.'' The 1977 breakthrough book involved a Los Angeles murder and its effect on two Irish-Catholic brothers, one a detective, the other a priest, neither untainted by corruption. Robert De Niro and Robert Duvall starred in the movie, which Dunne adapted with Didion. ``'True Confessions' was a major novel, one of the best books ever written about politics,'' said Pulitzer Prize winner David Halberstam, a friend and fellow writer. ``He was a very important writer, and a wonderful friend--talented, edgy, combative.''