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More copies of this ISBNThis title in other editionseBook editionsAbsolute Friendsby John le Carré
Review-A-Day"Absolute Friends is not merely another spy story destined for the 'Action' shelf of the local library, although many will ask no more of it than that, and will have no reason to be dissatisfied with what they get. Le Carré clearly hopes that this work of imagination will win readers over to his own hostility towards United States policy....Or does he?" James M. Murphy, The Times Literary Supplement (read the entire Times Literary Supplement review) "Le Carré, alas, uses Sasha as his spokesman for his opinions (all of which are well-justified, but that's beside the point) about Western imperialism....What a shame it is to have to say that a book by a writer as subtle and probing as le Carré is such a preachy and didactic bore." Adrienne Miller, Esquire (read the entire Esquire review) "Character, and the lack of depth, are important elements in the failure of le Carré's latest book....'I only ever cared about the man...I never gave a fig for the ideologies,' George Smiley once said. Le Carré, in this humanly implausible and ideologically enraged novel, appears to give a fig for neither." James Wood, The New Republic (read the entire New Republic review) Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:An absolutely triumphant bestseller — everywhere hailed as the masterpiece toward which John le Carré has been building since the fall of communism. This epic tale of loyalty, betrayal, and international espionage spans the lives of two friends from the riot-torn West Berlin of the 1960s to the grimy looking-glass of Cold War Europe to the present day of terrorism and new alliances — alliances that aren't always what they seem to be.
Absolute Friends is the thrilling work of international espionage that le Carré fans have long awaited — a brilliant, ferocious, heartbreaking work for the ages. Review:"No reader, whatever his politics, could fail to be moved by the passion and intelligence of le Carré's latest. For those who feel as he does about the war and its consequences, this book will be a special gift." Publishers Weekly Review:"A triumph....A blazingly good novel....Le Carré's best in years." David Kipen, San Francisco Chronicle Review:"A stunningly timely spy novel....It stands among le Carré's best." Entertainment Weekly Review:"As fine a pleasure in the reading as the best of le Carré." Alan Furst, Boston Globe Review:"A searing, startling novel that sweeps through much of the twentieth century and up to the present conflict with Iraq." Lev Grossman, Time Review:"Unfailingly entertaining....A terrific achievement by the best spy novelist out there — as engrossing, well-crafted, and satisfying as anything this observer of the unobserved has produced." Matt Konrad, Minneapolis Star Tribune Review:"His best novel in years....John le Carré is the master who raised the contemporary spy novel to the level of fine literature." Alan Cheuse, Chicago Tribune Review:"Compelling....John le Carré never, ever phones it in — not even on a secure line." Terrence Rafferty, The New York Times Book Review Review:"Le Carré is back to what he does best....Absolute Friends is his best book in years." Stephen Alford, Houston Chronicle Review:"[T]he novel never becomes the author's soapbox. The human story remains paramount, even if the chilling message is that human stories don't stand much of a chance in the world as we find it." Bill Ott, Booklist (Starred Review) Review:"Despite a piercing, compassionate portrait of a decent man struggling to keep up with a world in the throes of constant change, le Carré seems this time outpaced by...the layers upon layers of real-life duplicity in the world since 9/11." Kirkus Reviews Review:"Absolute Friends is one of [le Carré's] worst. The master of the Cold War has stumbled over the Iraq war. The poet of ironic detachment has turned shrill." David L. Beck, The San Jose Mercury News Review:"[U]ntil he self-destructs near the end, [le Carré] is not only comfortable again, but positively triumphant....All of this le Carré conveys with the deftest of touches. In the '60s Berlin scenes...he even displays a flair for comedy." Dan Cryer, Newsday Review:"[L]e Carré brings the thriller face to face with contemporary politics and...has once again demonstrated his mastery of his chosen genre while at the same time giving lesser, ordinary novelists a masterclass in taking nothing for granted." Robert McCrum, The Observer (U.K.) Review:"Le Carré relates all this with his accustomed skill....History can decide whether le Carré is right or wrong...but no one can deny that for the world's leading spy novelist...to take on the White House with such ferocity is a political event of note..." Patrick Anderson, The Washington Post Book World Review:"What [began as] a masterful, elegiac character study in the mould of...A Perfect Spy becomes an angry disquisition on contemporary geopolitics....Where once there was a subtle knife, here there is only a blunt stick." Steven Poole, The Guardian (U.K.) Review:"Absolute Friends is mostly classic le Carré and that means fiction of a very high order....Even if its message were not true and important, Absolute Friends would be a fine novel." Roy Hattersley, The Independent (U.K.) Review:"[A] masterful exploration of character....A little preachy and long-winded as he moves into the here-and-now, this is nevertheless among the most easily digestible of [le Carré's] novels." Margie Thomson, The New Zealand Herald Synopsis:An ex-spy discovers that some free gifts are too expensive to accept when a former friend offers him a path out of poverty — and with it their chance to change a world that both believe is going to the devil. Or will they? About the AuthorJohn le Carré is the author of numerous classic, bestselling novels, including The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, The Little Drummer Girl, and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. Several of his novels have been made into major motion pictures, including The Tailor of Panama and The Russia House. In the 1950s he worked for British Intelligence. He lives in Cornwall, England. What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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