12 replies to this topic

[DLibrasnow]

http://www.npr.org/t...storyId=4474061


For an industry shrouded in secrecy, the business of spying and espionage is one that many claim to understand -- especially if they happen to enjoy reading spy novels.

From intrigue-filled fiction spurred by the Cold War to glamorous movies with twisting plots, the business of spying -- espionage, surveillance and sabotage -- has captured imaginations for decades. The genre has adapted with the times, moving from NATO-U.S.S.R. conflicts to convoluted tales of international competition and terrorism.

At a time when the nation's intelligence agencies are being reformed, it seemed a good opportunity to take stock of great spy novels. To do that, we turned to an expert: Nancy Pearl, a Seattle librarian and author of a book of recommended reading.

Pearl says she has long been a fan of the genre -- and she's watched it change since the days of John le Carre and Ian Fleming, to reflect the modern world.

In addition to her librarian duties and compiling reading suggestions, Pearl has won a Women's National Book Association Award. And she is one of the few librarians in the world to have her own action figure.


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[TheSaint]

And we care about this woman's choices because?

[JKD68]

It looks like the list is heavily weighted with books from the last 10-20 years. That might have been done on purpose actually.

[DLibrasnow]

Really?

[spynovelfan]

And we care about this woman's choices because?

Because you might discover some really amazing spy novels to read?

[spynovelfan]

It looks like the list is heavily weighted with books from the last 10-20 years.  That might have been done on purpose actually.

What? None of those books have been published in the last 10 years apart from Silva's and Littell's The Company. A few were published in the early or mid 80s and some were published in the 60s. It isn't heavily weighted to the last 10-20 years at all. The Oppenheim was published in 1920.

[DLibrasnow]

Have you read any of these?

[JKD68]

Looks like I erred when I said the list was "heavily weighted" with books from the last 20 years. I checked & found that only 007 books fall under that criteria. I'm ashamed to say I haven't heard of several of these authors (Simmel, Oppenheim, Quammen, McCarry.) I really don't read contemporary spy novels so I ASSUMED these authors were relatively new on the scene. Oppenheim did ring a bell though.

[spynovelfan]

Oppenheim is one of the founders of the modern spy novel, and you can draw a straight line from him to John Buchan to Ian Fleming.

McCarry is a brilliant prose stylist, and has written a series featuring a CIA agent called Paul Christopher (who is also a published poet). It's more in the le Carr

Edited by spynovelfan, 05 February 2005 - 10:18 PM.

[JKD68]

Thanks for the summaries SNF. Appreciate it. Btw, what do you think of Silva? I was planning on trying one of his, you recommend any title in particular?

[SPECTRE ASSASSIN]

I'm afraid I never read any of the authors' books, except Daniel Silva's "A Death in Vienna". But it's not like she's the ultimate critic in reccomending books, so I don't have a soft spot for her.

[spynovelfan]

Haven't read any of Silva's stuff yet, JKD68, though I have a couple on the shelf. I've been reading a lot of non-fiction in the last couple of years, so there are some gaps.

Who *would* be the 'ultimate critic in recommending books', SPECTRE ASSASSIN? It's only ever anyone's taste, surely. For what it's worth, the ones I've read on that list were all very good indeed. But it's not my list, of course.

[SPECTRE ASSASSIN]

Hey why not?