I tried to read The Spy Who Came In From The Cold when I was a teenager and quickly dumped it. I was looking for action. It's not that sort of story. Le Carré's not that sort of espionage writer.
Instead this book is a complex, slow, unglamorous rendering of life in the espionage world in the post World War 2 era. There are no good guys and no bad guys. And in the end, no happy endings for anybody.
I was quite chilled by this statement made by Control - the Chief of the British Intelligence, and how ruthless he sounded.
I would say that since the war, our methods-out and those of the opposition-have become much the same. I mean you can't be less ruthless than the opposition simply because your government's 'policy' is benevolent, can you now?
The spy who came in from the cold - John le Carré
Have you read this book? What did you think of it?
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Ambrosia at The Purple Booker. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) "teaser" sentences from somewhere on that page
- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn't give too much away! You don't want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
