Book Recommendations
The Quiet American
By Graham Greene
Fiction, Classics, War & Military, Literary, General | 208 pages
2 recommendations
'The novel that I love the most is The Quiet American' Ian McEwan, Sunday Times bestselling author of Lessons
Into the intrigue and violence of 1950s Saigon comes CIA agent Alden Pyle, a young idealistic American sent to promote democracy through a mysterious 'Third Force'.
As Pyle's naive optimism starts to cause bloodshed, his friend Fowler, a cynical foreign correspondent, finds it hard to stand aside and watch. But even as Fowler intervenes he wonders why: for the greater good, or something altogether more complicated?
WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY ZADIE SMITH
**One of the BBC's 100 Novels That Shaped Our World**
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Caroline Gardiner
"On my first visit to Vietnam, I took this book, planning to immerse myself in a Vietnam of the 1950s, assuming that it would be mainly of historical interest. But when I arrived, I was immediately struck by how much of the layers of recent history were still evident everywhere. The legacy of French colonial rule of what was Indochina, in food, language and signage. The persistence of American influences was still evident, making the book, which explores themes of American exceptionalism, and the debates over US involvement in Asia, a particularly poignant read while in Vietnam."
John Neary
"This is a beautifully written story that captures the character and architecture of Vietnam. A great literary companion whilst travelling through a fabulous country."
