Our man in Havana | 
Rainy, windy day at the beach, so I‘m inside reading.
Number 4 of #14books14weeks
#bookspinbingo
#unreadbookshelf
pickGreene would have referred to this as one of his amusements and not a novel with serious themes or questions to be grappled with, yet he infused this story about a vacuum cleaner salesman fabricating intelligence reports for Britain‘s foreign service with the predictable Catholic and expat spy intrigue. The absurdity lies in London‘s credulity and the counter plot to remove him by the other faction. A comedy surely with a sprinkle of drama.
Benicàssim, Spain-
I thought about going out on the promenade tonight, but then remembered I had this cava I bought from a vineyard in Requena. So this seemed like an opportunity.
“You are interested in a person, not in life, and people die or leave us…But if you are interested in life it never lets you down.”
panA book about a Cuban spy that isn‘t interesting nor suspenseful. The satire is merely confusing and boring byeeeee
I am posting one book per day from my extensive to-be-read collection. No description and providing no reason for wanting to read it, I just do. Some will be old, some will be new. Don‘t judge me - I have a lot of books. Join in if you want!
#ABookADay2023
I am a tiny bit lay for April‘s #foodandlit #cuba but we enjoyed this Cuban dish. You all read some interesting titles! This was a good pick for me off my ancient TBR. https://www.thecandidappetite.com/cuban-potato-balls-papas-rellenas/ was easier than I thought. Now on to Afghanistan! #foodandlit2022
pickI enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. I listened on audible. I had purchased it some years ago, probably to explore Graham Greene. The kitsch music interludes were funny but they did make me dance in place. I laughed a lot. I thought about my government job a lot. I would compare it to the more modern Cohen brothers film, burn after reading. A picture of pre-castro #Cuba. #foodandlit #foodandlit2022
pickThree days into the #MarvellousMarch #Readathon and I've read about 7 hours. I managed to finish the tagged book, which was fantastic, for a book club tomorrow. This book was filled with fun characters and so much humor. Who doesn't like espionage satire?! I'm currently in the middle of five other books too, so hopefully I'll finish more by the end of the week.
@andrew65
Starting the #MarvellousMarch #Readathon with the DC Classics bookclub read and a hot cup of coffee for the surprisingly cold morning. I don't think March is supposed to feel this way in Texas.
@Andrew65
I will have a busy week next week, but I still want to keep up with all my reading commitments. I am trying to read at least 60 pages a day, so my goals are below:
📚Finish 3 books (including the tagged bookclub book)
📚Read at least 20 hours
#MarvelousMarch #Readathon
@Andrew65
pickFunny, entertaining and beautifully written. Highlights the absurd side of espionage.
(Be prepared for a little cringe-worthy racism and sexism, of it's time.)
pickThere are few better subjects for absurdist satire than espionage generally, and the Cold War in particular. There's something inherently silly about spies - sneaking about, leaving coded messages, etc. - that resembles children at play. I love the idea of phony intelligence reports that end up becoming true through the sheer might of collective paranoia, like a child's imaginary friend come to life to wreak havoc on the populace.
pickThis was my 12th classic read of the year (for the challenge I set myself) and one of the most enjoyable. It‘s a satirical look at Cold War spying with the protagonist, Wormold, an ex-pat Brit selling vacuum cleaners in Cuba. It gave me some Catch 22 feels - but it‘s slower and simpler. There are a couple of racist epithets in here - its published in 1958 and set post WW2. ⬇️
pickI enjoyed this much more on second reading, especially now that I‘ve read about the double cross system that the Allies used in WW2. And reading this book at home, rather than on the bus, allowed the humour to shine through much more clearly.
#DoubleSpin April 2020
pickThis is the third book in a row by Graham Greene that I read ..... and must say it‘s a shame I did not read anything by this great writer before. A plot that starts out in a very calm and slow motion rendering very well what was Havana and Cuba before revolution, and the non sense of the Cold War spying business. #2020
pickThis is a highly entertaining Cold War era spy tale. James Wormwold is an Englishman living in Havana who is recruited to join the British Secret Service. I seriously can‘t say much without spoiling a key plot point. I will say it was a delightful read, except for some dated racial language that is offensive, and the portrayal of women is about what you‘d expect from a novel written by a white man in the late 1950s. Notes on audio below:
My March reading stats are dreadful. Audio has saved me the last few months, so I‘m hoping they save me this month, too! Picked up 3 today that go with my March theme. Libro.fm is doing special sales to help support indie bookstores, so if you are looking for other ways to support your local indie, see if your store is linked to Libro.fm. (No affiliation-I just love that they exist and they‘re a great alternative to the Amazon machine)
pickBrilliantly crafted book, what starts out as a seemingly far-fetched concept gradually becomes more believable in the hands of someone whose personal experiences must have strongly influenced the plot. Very enjoyable, funny and insightful.
'Childhood was the germ of all mistrust. You were cruelly joked upon and then you cruelly joked. You lost the remembrance of pain through inflicting it. [...] Schools were said to construct character by chipping off the edges. His edges had been chipped, but the result had not, he thought, been character - only shapelessness, like an exhibit in the Museum of Modern Art.'
"You should dream more, Mr Wormold. Reality in our century is not something to be faced."
First impressions - loving the mindset and philosophies of Dr Hasselbacher!
"My worry isn't this year's or even next year's, it's a long term worry."
"Then it's not worth calling a worry."
Here is a clue to what I bought for Black Friday. Have you read the book? 😃
(A vacuum cleaner)
@NataliePatalie
pickQuick and fun read, it is different then what I usually read for sure. I like it.
#QuotsyMar19 Day 20: Be #loyal to love. I like this. I don‘t think I have read a novel by Grahame Greene yet. This one sounds interesting.
pickThis novel lampoons the intelligence community in the same manner that Joseph Heller's Catch-22 lampoons the absurdities of war.
pickKind of like James Bond, if James Bond were a hapless middle-aged dork selling vacuum cleaners. Delightfully irreverent and often ridiculous, but peppered with the surprisingly poignant moments one comes to expect from Graham Greene. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Childhood was the germ of all mistrust. You were cruelly joked upon and then you cruelly joked. You lost the remembrance of pain through inflicting it.
pickWhen you can't trust anyone how do you decide what to believe? A fabulous satire on British spy novels of the time that also raises some real questions about where loyalty should lie. And a quirky little romance too.
1. Tagged. I'm enjoying it.
2. We're getting more peak hour services on our train line
3. No more than usual
4. My favourite joke comes in 2 parts:
Q Why do ducks have big feet?
A To stamp out fires
Q Why do elephants have big feet?
A To stamp out flaming ducks
5. Will do
#friyayintro
I'm not generally one for #minimalistcovers but I do love these vintage Penguin editions and they do keep it pretty simple!
#jubilantjuly @RealLifeReading
'I believe we may be on to something so big that the H-bomb will become a conventional weapon'
'Is that desirable, sir?'
'Of course it is. Nobody worries about conventional weapons'
Reading Our Man in Havana in Havana, Cuba ! How cool is that?
Day 22 of #photoadaynov16
It's become apparent that I have not given #spynovels a proper try. I had to go to my tbr (and Audible wishlist) to find one for today's prompt! 😳
