John Le Carré and the Cold War - by Toby Manning (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

John le Carré and the Cold War explores the historical contexts and political implications of le Carré's major Cold-War novels. The first in-depth study of le Carré this century, this book analyses his work in light of key topics in 20th-century history, including containment of Communism, decolonization, the Berlin Wall, the Cuban missile crisis, the Cambridge spy-ring, the Vietnam War, the 70s oil crisis and Thatcherism.

Examining The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1974), Smiley's People (1979) and other novels, this book offers an illuminating picture of Cold-War Britain, while situating le Carré's work alongside that of George Orwell, Graham Greene and Ian Fleming. Providing a valuable contribution to contemporary understandings of both British spy fiction and post-war fiction, Toby Manning challenges the critical consensus to reveal a considerably less radical writer than is conventionally presented.

Review Quotes

"An analysis inspired by venerated figures of 20th-century Marxist literary criticism. This reappraisal of the popular novelist's oeuvre incorporates a fan's enthusiasm with the literary scholar's eye for ideological complexity. Summing Up: Recommended." --CHOICE

"John le Carre and the Cold War is highly informative and loaded with historical context." --Times Literary Supplement

"Manning's study proves to be an important contribution to le Carré scholarship and to criticism of espionage ?ction as a whole. Its signi?cance lies also in laying the foundations for future research." --Literature & History

"An important contribution to work on spy fiction and its contexts." --Rosie White, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Literature, Theory and Popular Culture, Northumbria University, UK

"Confidently in command of his materials, Toby Manning has produced a carefully compiled dossier on the historical and political valence of Le Carre's central fiction. His finely nuanced interpretations radiate with an authority indicative of a keen grasp of the literary imagination and a judicious depth of learning." --Alan Wald, H. Chandler Davis Collegiate Professor Emeritus, University of Michigan, USA

About the Author