John Le Carrè

[Connavar]

I know what type of spy books he writes.

I was wondering if anyone here had read him?


That his spy stories are more realistic than Bond type of spy stories are interesting but how are the action scenes in his books?

Im not talking about big action scenes alà Bond.

Wiki didnt say how the action in his books was.

I mean no mattter what type of spy story it is there must some kind of action scene. If its simple brutal killing or not.

 

[Somni]

I have read quite a few of them but it was a while ago, the 'action' tends to be more subtle, if I remember rightly. More concerned with the characters mental process than blazing away. It is hard to remember in more detail, being so long. I suppose the best way to find out is to borrow one from the library. Hope this helps.

 

[Urien]

I read a number of le carre several years ago. They are absorbing, intriguing and intelligent. It's more a battle of wits and seing through a glass darkly than action. Often the charcaters question their own motivation and morals.

They are well worth a read.

 

[Susan Boulton]

The tales of George Smiley and the "Circus" well worth a read.

Len Deighton's Harry Palmer is another "spy" whose adventures I used to read, these too, are worth a look.

 

[Anthony G Williams]

Le Carre had some connection with the intelligence services, I believe. I read some of his books decades ago, and remember them as being far more realistic than most - but not strong on dramatic action, no.

 

[Connavar]

Anthony G W: Thats exactly what i wanted to know.


I have read smart spy stories before where there were barely action scenes.

Im gonna read him anyway cause im a big fan of the genre whether its realistic spy stuff or spy alà Bond or spies that uses martial arts and assassin skills ala John Rain by Barry Eisler.


Im a big fan of Barry Eisler cause he was a CIA spy and knew evertyhing that about that world so his stories are very realistic and dark. I hope Le Carrè is something like that too, since he also has a backround as a spy.

 

[Thadlerian]

I own a copy of The Russia House. I have attempted to read it, and failed. Thrice.

It's not heavy, or uninteresting, or bad, or anything. I just can't stay with it. My copy has probably been cursed by the quarrelsome and ill-mannered spirit of Nikita Krushchev.

 

[Connavar]

Haha cursed


I must say im impressed by your toughness. I wouldnt try to read the same book three times.

 

[mosaix]

His earlier books are the best.

Le Carre has said to be regarded as a novelist rather than a spy writer. His later stories are an attempt at this. Unfortunately it doesn't work and The Russia House is an example.

Simply he is an excellent spy writer, but a mediocre novelist.

Read the books in sequence, when you find you're getting bored - stop reading.

The best ones are The Spy Who Came In From The Cold and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

 

[Allegra]

Connavar, I second mosaix. In fact I read only these two of Le Carrè and they are excellent.

 

[Connavar]

Yeah i will read those books cause they are the best ones apparently.

I dont have an interest in his nun spy books.

 

[Connavar]

I did read Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy back in 2007but i didnt have patience to read it at the time.

Right now i'm enjoying The Spy Who came in from The Cold. I can read a calm story like this deeper now. I like the depth,the character and the real world spy feel of it.

 

[Toby Frost]

I've read three of his so far. Tinker Tailor was pretty good, Our Game quite weak and inconclusive and The Secret Pilgrim very good indeed. Overall I find his style a little ponderous and slightly too heavy for the things he describes. That said there's none of the silly Bond stuff here and no mary-sues. These people are all seriously flawed and in a job I wouldn't want to do. The mixture of gentility, chess-like manouvering and occasional savage violence seems rather feasible to me.

I'd particularly reccomend The Secret Pilgrim. As a set of short stories featuring the same central characters it's able to deal with issues individually. It includes an excellent story about the gradual unmasking of a Russian spy: a really powerful tale and one of my favourite short stories ever. By the way, the BBC's adaptations with Alec Guiness are excellent too.

 

[Connavar]

I've read three of his so far. Tinker Tailor was pretty good, Our Game quite weak and inconclusive and The Secret Pilgrim very good indeed. Overall I find his style a little ponderous and slightly too heavy for the things he describes. That said there's none of the silly Bond stuff here and no mary-sues. These people are all seriously flawed and in a job I wouldn't want to do. The mixture of gentility, chess-like manouvering and occasional savage violence seems rather feasible to me.

The real Bond books are more fast paced but stil not as unrealistic as the movies....

I dont see any problem with his writing style in this book im reading. Im liking the calm prose and i wanted to read mxture of chess-like manouvering,violence because thats more realism than the movies version of spy stories.

Funny the spy,political books i enjoy are all written by writers who have worked in Foregin Service,Secret Service,CIA. Forsyth,Fleming,Le Carrè and Barry Eisler.

I'm a bit tired of action epics in spy form like Bourne books really. Must say the first book was quality but the second book was too over the top.

 

[Montero]

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold - I've not read the book, but have seen the BBC dramatisation quite recently. In many ways it was slow moving. Somehow it managed to be utterly gripping and intense.

Forsyth - remember seeing an interview with him when he commented that research was his favourite part of each book. Sitting down and writing it could be a slog. (Not an exact quote - he didn't say slog, just something like that). A while since I've read any of his, but I remember them as gripping and well written.

Bourne - saw the films before I tried to read the books - gave up on the first one. It had a lot more detail, and film doesn't entirely follow the book so far as I read it, but it was one I put down with a bookmark in as I fancied something else and have not gone back to it.

 

[Connavar]

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold - I've not read the book, but have seen the BBC dramatisation quite recently. In many ways it was slow moving. Somehow it managed to be utterly gripping and intense.

Forsyth - remember seeing an interview with him when he commented that research was his favourite part of each book. Sitting down and writing it could be a slog. (Not an exact quote - he didn't say slog, just something like that). A while since I've read any of his, but I remember them as gripping and well written.

Bourne - saw the films before I tried to read the books - gave up on the first one. It had a lot more detail, and film doesn't entirely follow the book so far as I read it, but it was one I put down with a bookmark in as I fancied something else and have not gone back to it.

Forsyth stories being based on real events,news is great. His research plus his gripping,hard characters is very good combo. The Day of The Jackal is a real classic. Hollywood destroyed a great book.....

Heh if you didnt like the first Bourne never read the second. It was much weaker, sappy melodrama about Bourne and his loved one....

 

[Vladd67]

Forsyth stories being based on real events,news is great. His research plus his gripping,hard characters is very good combo. The Day of The Jackal is a real classic. Hollywood destroyed a great book.....

Which version are you thinking of?

 

[shevdon]

Re: John le Carré

The BBC are running a Complete Smiley series at the moment - a dramatisation of all the Smiley books in a year, with Simon Russell Beale playing the lead. They've just done An Honourable Schoolboy and I think Smiley's People is due 11th, 18th and 25th April.

Just google 'Complete Smiley BBC'.

So far they have been absolutely excellent. I think you can only get them in the UK, though, for licensing reasons.

A great introduction to John le Carré's work, well worth a listen.

 

[Connavar]

Which version are you thinking of?

The silly Richard Gere,Bruce Willis film.

Not even Sidney Poiter can save that film. I haven't seen the old version. I thought that one was a British film.

 

[blacknorth]

I have mixed feelings about Le Carre's work His books are very much character driven, but the characters are often so stereotypical that following them is worthless - it may even be the case that his characters are stereotypical simply because he invented the stereotype (burned out, world weary secret agent, dicked over by his section, etc).

Le Carre's use of metaphor also leaves something to be desired - trying too hard to conjure a sufficiently literary image. The image of the small car trapped between two hulking great trucks on the motorway is about as complex as it gets. His endings also leave a great deal to be desired - a book like A Small Town In Germany becomes an utter waste of time due to a recklessly bad finish.

But there is an up side - as has been pointed out, the BBC adaptations seem to filter out most of the bad; and actors like Alec Guinness and Ray McAnally easily make up for lapses in characterisation with sheer presence alone.

Also of note: two splendid films from le Carre's novels - The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, with Richard Burton and Claire Bloom; and The Deadly Affair, with James Mason and Maximlian Schell. The latter may just be the most cerebral spy film ever made, the denouement taking place during a staging of Edward II, no less.