Call For the Dead
The Spy Who Came In From the Cold
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
The Honourable Schoolboy
Smiley's People
To me, the best one is The Spy Who Came In From the Cold, published in the 1960s. This is a link to William Boyd's 2010 review and synopsis of the novel: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/jul/24/carre-spy-came-cold-boyd. A great review, because he seems to agree with me. Ha ha.
I had read at least three of these novels before, but reading them all in a bunch, and nearly consecutively in the order they were written, provides a pretty good grasp of the spy novel as a genre, and of Le Carre's genius as a novelist.
Richard Burton was a great actor, maybe one of the two or three greatest* in modern times, in my opinion. But I think the movie of The Spy Who Came In From the Cold was largely a failure. It certainly didn't come near the appeal of the book, to me, anyway.
*The other two greatest actors, according to me, would be Alec Guinness and Marlon Brando. But one gets the feeling that Brando, as an actor, was made, not born. Alec Guinness was born with it. Years ago, Dick Cavett cryptogrammed Guinness' name to "Genuine Class." And I think Burton was born with it, just didn't always give a damn.
Burton had the best speaking voice I've ever heard. It wasn't a pretty voice; I remember it as sort of nasal and raspy. But I don't think the man ever uttered a syllable that wasn't clear as a bell, and spot-on to whatever effect he meant to convey. I remember him in some minor movie, reading Hamlet's speech to Gertrude, "Return not to mine uncle's bed," and the memory of that few seconds has made me go back and read Hamlet over again more than once.
3 comments:
Of those books, I liked TTSS the best. It seemed to have the depth of story and most clearly defined characters. It's nice to see the good guys get one, without having to murder babies or something horrible like that.
But the reason I love that book is the opening chapters, where the new teacher arrives at the boarding school. That's the first thing I can remember reading by LeCarre, and it was perfect.
I liked it a lot, too. That was Jim Ellis, right? My other favorite spy was Jerry Westerby, in The Honourable Schoolboy; I knew they were going to kill him, and I hated it.
That was Ellis. I know what you mean about Schoolboy. The author didn't make me understand why he did all that stupid stuff. Especially why he went back for princess vapid.
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