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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
This is a difficult book for me to rate, because although I enjoyed parts of it a great deal, I also found it to be really hard work at times. A difficult book - for me anyway - but I'm glad I read it, and overall I did enjoy it, and I appreciate that it is very well done.
A very fine book indeed. I also found it the most readable of LeCarre/Cornwell's books. More later in our MetaFilter group thread discussing it.
There's a dual structure here, where Jack Brotherhood is trying to find out what Pym has done, running alongside Pym trying to work out why he has done it. Both unwind simultaneously, the "what" giving a loose sort of traditional mystery structure pulling the book on, supporting the more retrospective life story parts of Pym. The depiction of Pym as sort of completely decentred, being whoever it was most convenient to be and how he got there, is well built. It's a book that seems very English, while be convinced that's not a good thing to be. There's some great paragraphs capturing the English upper middle class and their desire for an England that doesn't seem to exist, and the institutional conflation of England and the Tory party.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
reflective
tense
slow-paced
When Magnus Pym disappears, the British Secret Service and their American counterparts are terrified. Why has Pym gone to ground? Has the long serving diplomat and spy defected? Le Carre weaves the tale of Pym's life from childhood through to adulthood, taking in the relationship he has with his father and how Pym built his life.
From his days running errands as a kid, Pym learns how to lie. His father is a conman, and Pym learns from his relentless ability to make people believe in him. He learns how to observe, and we see his personality is built on pleasing others - his "self" is malleable - it is what other people want it to be.
I seem to be in the minority, but this is not one of my favourite le Carre's novels. I found it to be overly long, and repetitive. The lead character never had an unexplored thought. I also found the jumping around a bit jarring - not so much the different people and locations but the times when it jumps back to Magnus' childhood. Perhaps it is because it is more autobiographical than the other books, but I really struggled to get into it. I was happy to reach the end.
From his days running errands as a kid, Pym learns how to lie. His father is a conman, and Pym learns from his relentless ability to make people believe in him. He learns how to observe, and we see his personality is built on pleasing others - his "self" is malleable - it is what other people want it to be.
I seem to be in the minority, but this is not one of my favourite le Carre's novels. I found it to be overly long, and repetitive. The lead character never had an unexplored thought. I also found the jumping around a bit jarring - not so much the different people and locations but the times when it jumps back to Magnus' childhood. Perhaps it is because it is more autobiographical than the other books, but I really struggled to get into it. I was happy to reach the end.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced