A review by joanna_m
The Naive And Sentimental Lover by John le Carré

1.0

I rarely abandon books, and when I do, it is usually within the first chapter, and generally because I dislike the genre or the author's style irritates me. I persevered with this novel for almost 200 pages because I am trying to read all the Le Carres in order, and felt I needed to finish this in order to 'earn' Tinker, Tailor. However, I hated it so much that I felt I had to give up before it irrevocably coloured my view of Le Carre's work. My primary problem with the novel was that it just seemed so pointless, leading up to nothing (I know I didn't finish, but I flicked onwards and read other reviews). I have never accepted the snobiness against 'genre' fiction and in favour of 'literary' fiction, when this example has no plot! The characters are universally unlikeable, the women especially so, really emphasising Le Carre's weak female characters. The most generous interpretation I can take of this is that our 'hero', Aldo, is having a breakdown and hallucinates Shamus (a cringeworthy semi-pun) and Helen as manifestations of his suppressed wild side. I could not connect with the irresponsible Bohemians or the over privilaged rich guys, and I was just left feeling bored and irritated. Read it for completism, not pleasure.