Famed orator, author, and journalist Christopher Hitchens died Thursday night from pneumonia, a complication of the oesophageal cancer he was fighting. He was 62.

There’s nothing substantive I feel I can say right now about so large and complex a public figure. My thoughts are probably best summed up by Slate’s Jacob Weisberg:

“Here’s what I learned from Christopher Hitchens in the 25 years I knew him. Don’t let anyone else do your thinking for you. Follow your principles to the end. Don’t flinch from the truth. Repeat until the last ounce of strength drains from your body.”

Two suggestions:

Read the New York Times’ obituary here.

Read Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter’s remembrance here.