John le Carré, outstanding novelist whose work transcended the spy genre – obituary
He transformed espionage fiction in the masterworks The Spy Who Came in From the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
14 December 2020 • 9:11am
John le Carré, who has died aged 89, was one of the most successful post-war English novelists, and perhaps the finest thriller writer of the 20th century.
Le Carré, the pen name adopted by David Cornwell, used his own experience of intelligence work to extend the range of a genre whose heroes, epitomised by James Bond, were principally still romantic figures engaged in a glamorous profession.
Le Carré had only contempt for this sleeping-car image of espionage. His spies were weary and fearful men, combatants in a cold and sombre war, his themes those of isolation, betrayal and the clash between the demands of an individual’s conscience and those of an amoral, post-Imperial State.
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John le Carré: where to start reading, and 10 of his best novels
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Updated: Dec 14 2020, 20:45 ET
JOHN le Carré s thrillers are some of the greatest spy stories ever told – but they re nothing compared to his real-life autobiography.
The master novelist passed away aged 89 in Cornwall from pneumonia on Saturday after a short illness – the end of a truly remarkable life in British intelligence, Cold War espionage, and worldwide celebrity.
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John le Carré, who passed away aged 89 at the weekend, lived an extraordinary life Credit: Getty Images - Getty
Le Carré, real name David Cornwell, was thrust into a secretive world from an early age as the son of a conman who had links with the Kray gangster family.
10 ways of getting to know John le Carré Bethanne Patrick © (Antonin Kratochvil / Associated Press) John Le Carre in Cornwall, Great Britain, 2003. The preeminent author of Cold War spy novels died Dec. 12. (Antonin Kratochvil / Associated Press)
John le Carré, the acknowledged sage of espionage fiction, had the literary equivalent of perfect pitch. Not only was he adept at mimicry, especially of the English upper class; he knew why and how to use it to decimate hypocrisy.
Le Carré died Dec. 12, and it’s safe to say the world will never see his like again, because his powers arose from unique, irreplaceable circumstances. Born David Cornwell in 1931, he was the son of the kind of hypocritical con man Le Carré grew up to loathe. Ronnie Cornwell became the model for Magnus Pym’s father, Rick Pym, in “A Perfect Spy.”