John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
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Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#2It was pretty shallow and typical to me. There was very little nuance to both the characters and the story. I don’t really understand the reputation this book enjoys.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#3One of my favorite novels of any genre.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#4Anyone have any recommendations for other classic spy novels like le Carre’s? I’ve read some Greene and Deighton, which were both mentioned in the article, so I suppose I should revisit those, but would be interested in any other works with a similar scene and setting.
One of my favorite le Carre tidbits - apparently in the UK and US versions of “Tinker, Tailor,” a character in one version takes a ferry in Hong Kong, but takes a tunnel in another version.
Apparently after the original UK release, one of the readers asked le Carre why the character didn’t just take the (relatively recently opened) tunnel between Kowloon and the mainland, le Carre went white in the face and promptly rewrote that part in the forthcoming US version for its subsequent release and had the character take the tunnel instead (as anyone would have done in those circumstances, given the two options).
Terrific writer and storyteller. Must have had a hell of a life.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#5Anyone have any recommendations for other classic spy novels like le Carre’s? I’ve read some Greene and Deighton, which were both mentioned in the article, so I suppose I should revisit those, but would be interested in any other works with a similar scene and setting. One of my favorite le Carre tidbits - apparently in the UK and US versions of “Tinker, Tailor,” a character in one version takes a ferry in Hong Kong,…
Most Alan Furst novels are good. They are largely the same, but the despite being cookie cutter, the cookie is pretty tasty.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#6If I can compare le Carre with Cormac McCarthy I would say The Spy Who Came in From the Cold is his “The Road”. Its the novel people always recommend and put on “best books” lists because its short, punchy and therefore seems like a good introduction. But both authors have a substantial body of work that much better represents them as authors since it explores the themes that really are uniquely interesting about their work. For le Carre I think the Smiley novels and a Perfect Spy and for McCarthy the plains trilogy and Blood Meridian are much more rewarding if you are willing to put in the time.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#7It was pretty shallow and typical to me. There was very little nuance to both the characters and the story. I don’t really understand the reputation this book enjoys.
I think it is because the novel has entered the subconscious of spy fiction and so many things have been inspired by it intentionally or not that it doesn't seem as fresh as it once did. But at the time, the notion that intelligence work is a dirty game and that everybody follows basically the same rulebook was pretty novel and even shocking. These days this is just generally accepted as true -- even the recent James Bond movies have this cynical view.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#8Anyone have any recommendations for other classic spy novels like le Carre’s? I’ve read some Greene and Deighton, which were both mentioned in the article, so I suppose I should revisit those, but would be interested in any other works with a similar scene and setting. One of my favorite le Carre tidbits - apparently in the UK and US versions of “Tinker, Tailor,” a character in one version takes a ferry in Hong Kong,…
Most Alan Furst novels are good. They are largely the same, but the despite being cookie cutter, the cookie is pretty tasty. https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/49941.Alan_Furst
Yeah, I like them but he does seem to write about occupied Paris a bit too often. When he focuses on places less covered in WWII fiction like Bulgaria, Romania, or Greece, it is a bit more interesting.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#9It was pretty shallow and typical to me. There was very little nuance to both the characters and the story. I don’t really understand the reputation this book enjoys.
I think it is because the novel has entered the subconscious of spy fiction and so many things have been inspired by it intentionally or not that it doesn't seem as fresh as it once did. But at the time, the notion that intelligence work is a dirty game and that everybody follows basically the same rulebook was pretty novel and even shocking. These days this is just generally accepted as true -- even the recent James…
Thanks for that insight. I read the book for the first time in 2015, well after it had already established itself. I can see the appeal if it had a revelatory view on spycraft at the time.
Re: John le Carré's 'The Spy Who Came in from the Cold' is the ultimate spy novel
#10It was pretty shallow and typical to me. There was very little nuance to both the characters and the story. I don’t really understand the reputation this book enjoys.
I think it is because the novel has entered the subconscious of spy fiction and so many things have been inspired by it intentionally or not that it doesn't seem as fresh as it once did. But at the time, the notion that intelligence work is a dirty game and that everybody follows basically the same rulebook was pretty novel and even shocking. These days this is just generally accepted as true -- even the recent James…
It was also seen as a more realistic, grown-up alternative to the James Bond novels that were hugely popular at the time.