A Most Wanted Man by John le Carré

I have been reading le Carré for years - originally knocked out by The Spy Who Came in From the Cold and then even more enthusiastic about the Smiley novels. The Perfect Spy was a particular favorite.

The books are all about deceit in interpersonal relationships - a topic of great personal interest to me, as my father and mother divorced when I was very young and I grew up with my father and grandmother, who re-created my exceptionally savvy mother as an irrelevent no-account. Further, my grandmother was a true Victorian - born in Leicester, England in 1890 - who did not talk plainly or realistically about important things in life (sex, religion, prejudice). And finally, as I was growing up, there was an increasing chasm between the attitude presented to me by my father and grandmother that mothers were inconsequential and the fact that my dad lived almost his entire adult life, unmarried, with his own mother.

Well, but to le Carré! So the last few of his books (e.g., Russia House, Tailor of Panama) did not seem to me to be all that great. I liked The Constant Gardener, but hadn't read the books afterward. Then I heard le Carré interviewed on NPR about his new book, A Most Wanted Man , and next time I walked into my local library, it was sitting on the new arrivals shelf! So I grabbed it. Found it to be true coin of the realm - immediately engaging, with the familiar le Carré voice and world established immediately and firmly. The book doesn't contain many surprises, but was still a wonderful read. le Carré is now 77 - hope he keeps writing for another 30 years!