Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

I will take ownership of my star rating as a personal failing - I read the first half of the novel in too many, too distanced spurts, and it took me recommitting to the read to feel the pace of the plot and keep the characters straight. I will say that I still have trouble imagining this as a movie (although perhaps I shouldn't doubt Gary Oldman's acting prowess) because it is mostly talking and psychological intrigue as opposed to action. It's great talking and psychological intrigue, though. Overall, it strikes me as an American reader as pleasingly British, and George Smiley is as lovable as an unglamorous-but-brilliant intelligence officer as one could ask for.

Insanity!

What have I not done with this story? I've listened to the audiobook, watched the movie, watched the TV show, listened to the BBC radio drama, I mean this story is just SOOOO good!

All right, why did I love this book (or rather, Audiobook) so much? Because it's so realistic! The amount of detail that Le Carre provides gives you such a down-to-Earth feeling. When he talks about office-spaces and Lamp-Lighters and Scalp-Hunters, you don't think of the spy life as something glamorous or something that's different from everyday life.

Le Carre's prose does that very well. He takes spies and espionage and such and makes them seem like business trips or something, except with a little more scary shit on the side. Smiley's character is fantastic, again: because he's realistic! We can all relate to some quiet chap who's really smart, can't we?

This book is so great, that I don't even know how to describe certain aspects of its genius-ness. I recommend that everyone watch the show with Alec Guinness as well, a great viewing.