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Our Man Down in Havana: The Story Behind Graham Greene's Cold War Spy Novel

(Hardback)


Publishing Details

Full Title:

Our Man Down in Havana: The Story Behind Graham Greene's Cold War Spy Novel

Contributors:

By (Author) Christopher Hull

ISBN:

9781643130187

Publisher:

Pegasus Books

Imprint:

Pegasus Books

Publication Date:

5th March 2019

Country:

United States

Classifications

Readership:

General

Fiction/Non-fiction:

Non Fiction

Main Subject:
Other Subjects:

Biography: general
Biography: historical, political and military
History of the Americas

Dewey:

823.912

Physical Properties

Physical Format:

Hardback

Number of Pages:

352

Dimensions:

Width 163mm, Height 236mm, Spine 30mm

Weight:

536g

Description

Exploring the backstory that led to the writing of Graham Greene's beloved satirical spy novel,Our Man Down in Havanaevokes this pivotal time and place in the author's life.

When U.S. immigration authorities deported Graham Greene from Puerto Rico in 1954, the British author made an unplanned visit to Havana and the former MI6 officer had stumbled upon the ideal setting for a comic espionage story. Three years later, he returned in the midst of Castros guerrilla insurgency against a U.S.-backed dictator to begin writing his iconic novel Our Man in Havana. Twelve weeks after its publication, in January 1959, the Cuban Revolution triumphed, soon transforming a capitalist playground into a communist stronghold.

Combining biography, history, politics, and a measure of psychoanalysis, Our Man Down in Havana investigates the real story behind Greenes fiction. It includes his many visits to a pleasure island that became a revolutionary island, turning his chance involvement into a political commitment. His Cuban novel describes an amateur agent who dupes his intelligence chiefs with invented reports about concrete platforms and unidentifiable pieces of giant machinery. With eerie prescience, Greenes satirical tale had foretold the Cold Wars most perilous episode, the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Exploiting a wealth of archival material and interviews with key protagonists,Our Man Down in Havanadelves into the story behind and beyond the authors prophetic Cuban tale, focusing on one slice of Greenes manic life: a single novel and its complex history.

Reviews

"A lively and informative work. Hull wraps his literary, cinematic, and political history in a pocket-biography of Greene, tailored to set the authors espionage story in context." * Wall Street Journal *
"A focused and entertaining account of the making of Greenes novel of espionage,Our Man in Havana. Hulls book is a delicious companion to the tale Greene confected from the incompetence of spooks and an island in turmoil." * The Economist *
"Hull minutely examines the plot, characters, context, creation, reception, filming, and afterlife of Greene's 1958 satirical novel,Our Man in Havana. Drawing on Greene's published and unpublished writings; studies and biographies of Greene; abundant archival material; and his own 17 visits to Cuba, Hull sets Greene's life amid Cuba's tumultuous history. A biography notable for its deep research." * Kirkus Reviews *
"Hull tells a marvelous story. His research is, frankly, humbling: he has found many documents that no one has read before and many witnesses who have never been interviewed. The book is vivid and accurate in ways that most other works on Greene simply arent." * Library Review *
"Often insightful and always meticulous book. Those who relish every detail of Greenes life will find Hulls book rewarding. A stalwart and original contribution to Greeneology." * Financial Times *
"Anybody interested in either Greene or Cuba will find this a splendid read, with a trainspotterly level of detail. The best thing about Hulls book, however, is also the best thing about Greenes novel: the resurrection of Batistas Havana in all its delicious loucheness and horrific violence." * The Daily Telegraph *
"Cuba meant a great deal to Greene. HullsOur Man Down in Havanaconjures the Cuban capital in all its tatterdemalion glory and Afro-Caribbean collision of skin colors and cultures." * New Statesman *
"A completely fascinating book, immaculately researched, full of insight and telling detail. A revelation and a delight." -- A completely fascinating book, immaculately researched, full of insight and telling detail. A revelation and a delight.
"Meticulously researched, impressively informative, exceptionally well written, organized and presented." * Midwest Book Review *
"Richly detailed and packed with insight not just into the historical context of the novel and film, but also into the creative process itself." -- Matthew Parker, author of 'Goldeneye: Where Bond Was Born'
"It is the kind of obsessive book I like besta full-body immersion into Greeneland." * The Spectator (UK) *
"Spying is eternal, opines George Smiley in one of John Le Carrs thrillers. Fiction or not, he is right. While technical intelligence in todays digital world floods agencies with too much intelligence, the need for humintspiesremains as strong as ever. In the dirty, corrupt world of exploiting other human beings: traitors; idealists; or just plain greedy; reality offers a darker picture. Christopher HullsOur Man Down in Havanadissects Graham Greenes classic satire on spies with forensic skill, exposing the rotten heart of the CIA's wilderness of mirrors.' An excellent book for intelligence professionals and the general reader alike. Read it and pondersometimes fact is stranger than fiction." -- Colonel John Hughes-Wilson, author of 'A Brief History of the Cold War' and 'The Secret State'
"Our Man Down in Havanaconjures the Cuban capital in all its pre-Castro glory." -- Ian Thomson * Evening Standard *
"The data for this book was compiled from an extensive range of archival investigation and a thorough analysis of Greenes biography and other works. Christopher Hulls book can productively appeal to researchers and students working on Graham Greenes life and works as well as to those studying British policies in Cuba." * World Literature Today *

Author Bio

Christopher Hull, PhD, is Senior Lecturer in Spanish & Latin American Studies at the University of Chester. His research focuses on British interactions with Latin America. He first visited Cuba in 1997 and has traveled extensively around the island during seventeen further visits, often in the footsteps of Graham Greene. He lives in England.

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