tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post8551030409371505939..comments2024-03-28T22:42:54.810-07:00Comments on Bitter Tea and Mystery: A Perfect Spy: John le CarréTracyKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-86398449092610104812019-11-09T22:11:25.244-08:002019-11-09T22:11:25.244-08:00I am sure I will reread this book, but I still hav...I am sure I will reread this book, but I still have not read many other of his books so it may be a while. I agree that reading about the father is less interesting than the rest of the story, but it is such a good book.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-47302359915242593862019-11-09T13:30:37.451-08:002019-11-09T13:30:37.451-08:00I love LeCarre, but have to say that I have read t...I love LeCarre, but have to say that I have read this book 3 times...I keep hoping that I will find the passages in which he writes about his father more interesting, but I find the father (both in his real life and fictional life) to be a very odious and uninteresting character. Magnus is so intriguing and the tension in trying to find out why and where he went, that for me having to spend time poring over the detritus from his childhood was very boring. Perhaps because I have read so many of his books, and attendant bios and his autobiography, the father stories have grown tediously familiar and old - but LeCarre's books, the subject matter and the characters are so finely drawn that I wish he could bury the ghost of his father and I would have preferred to spend far less time with him and more time with Magnus, Mary and his colleagues in their search for him. It is an object lesson in the type of damage a manipulative sociopath can inflict on a child or a spouse. To me, the father is a combination of Fagan and P.T. Barnum in a nice suit and I just don't want to be in his company so his antics leave me cold and bored. But you can scan those chapters and still thoroughly enjoy this book because those chapters on his father really do not lead you to the core of the story - but they do illuminate the damage he did to the soul of Magnus.<br />Boulevard Saint-Germainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01274986553172747155noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-49538608995165250802016-10-23T12:34:54.674-07:002016-10-23T12:34:54.674-07:00The next le Carre novel I will read will be Smiley...The next le Carre novel I will read will be Smiley's People, Moira. Then I will move on to another non-Smiley book, maybe A Small Town in Germany. I may have read some of his books back in my younger days, but reading them now I note no familiarity, so not sure anymore. But it is great getting to them now.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-76764964865983005662016-10-23T05:24:50.613-07:002016-10-23T05:24:50.613-07:00This is on my list - I've read a lot of John l...This is on my list - I've read a lot of John le Carre, but never rush to the next one. But with yours and other's reviews, Perfect Spy does sound like a must-read.Clothes In Bookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14680610242823846662noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-72547826134140785052016-10-15T12:16:37.268-07:002016-10-15T12:16:37.268-07:00Exactly. I agree, Prashant. I bought a lot of book...Exactly. I agree, Prashant. I bought a lot of books by le Carre at the book sale because now that I have read several I am willing to try anything by him.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-60999228083356760282016-10-15T07:47:15.997-07:002016-10-15T07:47:15.997-07:00Tracy, I plan to read this book someday, soon. I t...Tracy, I plan to read this book someday, soon. I think le Carré would be readable in any length. You don't notice the size of his books as you read.Prashant C. Trikannadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16079354501998741758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-37633729411424520222016-10-14T13:03:17.859-07:002016-10-14T13:03:17.859-07:00I did, Mathew. Many, many thanks to you for sendin...I did, Mathew. Many, many thanks to you for sending it to me. It is definitely a novel I will reread, even though it is so long. But I may try to find a copy with larger print next time.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-11408221565466631382016-10-14T13:00:08.845-07:002016-10-14T13:00:08.845-07:00I never thought of that, Sergio. A very good point...I never thought of that, Sergio. A very good point, TINKER TAILOR looked at differently.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-65730338742765224052016-10-14T12:58:15.699-07:002016-10-14T12:58:15.699-07:00Forgot to say about THE PIGEON TUNNEL, Col. I just...Forgot to say about THE PIGEON TUNNEL, Col. I just saw a review of that and it appears it does. I will definitely be reading it eventually.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-60994816133867155772016-10-14T12:55:00.771-07:002016-10-14T12:55:00.771-07:00Col, now that I have gotten into reading books by ...Col, now that I have gotten into reading books by le Carre, the length does not bother me so much for his novels. I know I will enjoy the writing and not get bored in the middle. The Honourable Schoolboy was about the same length and I did feel it slowed down at places, but not this one.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-42063100946757541702016-10-14T12:54:21.626-07:002016-10-14T12:54:21.626-07:00I thought this title looked familiar! ;) Glad you...I thought this title looked familiar! ;) Glad you enjoyed it, Tracy.Mathew Pausthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06157135006791553019noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-87926073453508788212016-10-14T12:47:34.528-07:002016-10-14T12:47:34.528-07:00I do like stories about family dynamics, Margot. A...I do like stories about family dynamics, Margot. And it explains why le Carre wrote so well about this type of relationship.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-24625316141051367992016-10-14T12:28:04.823-07:002016-10-14T12:28:04.823-07:00I always figure I can give up on a very long book ...I always figure I can give up on a very long book if I am not enjoying it, Tim, but with le Carre I cannot imagine that happening to me.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-41240939632315169032016-10-14T12:25:38.008-07:002016-10-14T12:25:38.008-07:00The writing was at times confusing for me, Keishon...The writing was at times confusing for me, Keishon, because Pym refers to himself sometimes in third person, sometimes in 1st person. But the subject matter was perfect for me and I like stories with multiple viewpoints. So it worked for me.TracyKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08303342674824383688noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-68579690507171066252016-10-14T00:12:53.158-07:002016-10-14T00:12:53.158-07:00I do think this is a really major book in the le C...I do think this is a really major book in the le Carre canon - it is certainly the most autobiographical (the father figure is acknowledged as being very close to the author's) and I love how it often reads like TINKER TAILOR but from the point of view of the mole!Sergio (Tipping My Fedora)https://bloodymurder.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-3382935640637535232016-10-13T21:11:18.499-07:002016-10-13T21:11:18.499-07:00The length kinds of puts me off a bit, I kind of t...The length kinds of puts me off a bit, I kind of think I could read three other books in the same time span it would take for this one. You do make it sound good though and it's lurking in a tub somewhere. <br />He's just had a memoir published over here - THE PIGEON TUNNEL. I wonder if it covers any of the same ground?col2910https://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-16826743693587612202016-10-13T08:45:34.932-07:002016-10-13T08:45:34.932-07:00I admit, Tracy, this is one I've not (yet) rea...I admit, Tracy, this is one I've not (yet) read. Still, I really like John le Carré's writing, and I can see how you'd be drawn in, even though the book is a long one. Interesting how elements of his own story are woven into the story...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-11862311824087744962016-10-13T08:26:58.914-07:002016-10-13T08:26:58.914-07:00Correction. Call for the Dead.
Damn autocorrect!Correction. Call for the Dead. <br />Damn autocorrect!RTDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17113953356514605424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-84992561602292246022016-10-13T08:25:30.466-07:002016-10-13T08:25:30.466-07:00Good review. I've not read this one yet, but I...Good review. I've not read this one yet, but I prefer his earlier, shorter works: call or the Dead, Murder of Quality, and The Spy Who Came in From the Cold. I still might try The Perfect Spy. Your review encourages me.RTDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17113953356514605424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4167054806459662988.post-41829294341448187012016-10-12T21:26:34.343-07:002016-10-12T21:26:34.343-07:00I have this one. I have to be in the mood to read ...I have this one. I have to be in the mood to read this writer. I'm curious to see how I like the structure of the story as it's not something I like either. But then I hate epistolary novels but loved Bram Stoker's Dracula. Go figure. --Keishon Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com