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johnhsmith's review against another edition
4.0
Delight of a book. Now I can re-read his works with some insight to inspiration for characters and plot.
krep___'s review against another edition
5.0
Full disclosure: huge le Carré fan. After having read just about all of his novels (some more than once) over the last 30 years, this memoir is especially enjoyable. It provides the back stories to many of them. I figured that, as he's pretty old, maybe he sensed his end might not be too far off and wanted to make sure he got this stuff down before it was too late. But then he follows up with another novel after this. There goes that theory. Anyway, the stories from his own life about the people he's known that led him to write his novels are as emotional and interesting as the fictional versions. How this book would play for a reader unfamiliar with le Carré's work is hard for me to say. I'd certainly recommend reading all the fiction first and save this for last.
mubeenirfan's review against another edition
3.0
Reason of picking up any memoir is through the author's name and whatever you know about that author. Strangely, this was not the case for me here. I knew virtually nothing about John le Carre. I did not even know that it was a pseudonym for David Cornwell. I only knew one fact that John le Carre wrote a book called 'The Night Manager' and Tom Hiddleston acted brilliantly in a British tv series by that name.
David Cornwell was a spy when he was young and when it was much more fashionable than it is now. He is also a proper English man (Eton & Oxford) and his father was a con artist who served jail time in various countries but kept working towards one final catch which never happened.
The memoirs are divided into small bite sized chapters where David Cornwell introduces the reader to the background of his books & characters in addition to very colourful anecdotes from his life. This book is witty in classic English sense and you smile through majority of the book but there is melancholy too as expected of an ageing writer who has lead a long active life and is now reflecting on various stories from his past.
A good quick read, suitable for someone looking for a light read. I might have given it higher ratings had I known about the stories & books he has written in order to be able to relate well (The Spy who came in from the cold, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Constant Gardener etc.) but the fault is entirely mine.
David Cornwell was a spy when he was young and when it was much more fashionable than it is now. He is also a proper English man (Eton & Oxford) and his father was a con artist who served jail time in various countries but kept working towards one final catch which never happened.
The memoirs are divided into small bite sized chapters where David Cornwell introduces the reader to the background of his books & characters in addition to very colourful anecdotes from his life. This book is witty in classic English sense and you smile through majority of the book but there is melancholy too as expected of an ageing writer who has lead a long active life and is now reflecting on various stories from his past.
A good quick read, suitable for someone looking for a light read. I might have given it higher ratings had I known about the stories & books he has written in order to be able to relate well (The Spy who came in from the cold, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Constant Gardener etc.) but the fault is entirely mine.
lilreaderbug's review against another edition
4.0
Only 4 stars because, like other reviewers, I'm comparing this autobiography to Le Carre's novels. Le Carre talks about inspiration for some of his novels and his life. I enjoyed how he didn't just write some boring, chronological book but instead wrote snippets of his life to paint a picture of himself. I recommend to any Le Carre fan.
rachel45's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
caroparr's review against another edition
3.0
Short pieces about people he's known, ranging from Alec Guinness to political figures to various spies. He also says quite a bit about his parents, who were far from parental, being either absent or duplicitous. Uneven, but a must-read for le Carré fans.