A Firing Offense

Rating:
Summary: Great story, very well-writen.
Review: A fantastic merging of the espionage and media worlds, something easier said than done. The plot was clever, the ideas fresh, and the characters well-developed. I look forward to reading more of Ignatius' work.

Rating:
Summary: Great story, very well-writen.
Review: A fantastic merging of the espionage and media worlds, something easier said than done. The plot was clever, the ideas fresh, and the characters well-developed. I look forward to reading more of Ignatius' work.

Rating:
Summary: It was great
Review: A page turning thrill ride No more to sa

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful surprise of a thriller.
Review: As a thriller author myself, I read a tremendous amount of "the competition." I had seen some media people discussing this novel on television when the hardcover came out, and was not suffienctly intrigued to buy it. But I picked it up in paperback last night and read it in two sittings. First, Ignatius's writing ability is far above average. With seeming ease, he writes with great economy and insight. A FIRING OFFENSE is bare of the cheap devices usually employed by thriller writers (in fact, it hardly even contains violence) yet I could not turn the pages fast enough. Ignatius handles the moral complexities with a sure hand, reminding me a bit of vintage LeCarre. The accumulated wisdom of an international journalist also feels genuine, and adds greatly to the novel. The fact that this novel did not break out is a sad commentary on the taste of the general readership in this country. Best of luck to Mr. Ignatius, who should have a bright literary future.

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful surprise of a thriller.
Review: As a thriller author myself, I read a tremendous amount of "the competition." I had seen some media people discussing this novel on television when the hardcover came out, and was not suffienctly intrigued to buy it. But I picked it up in paperback last night and read it in two sittings. First, Ignatius's writing ability is far above average. With seeming ease, he writes with great economy and insight. A FIRING OFFENSE is bare of the cheap devices usually employed by thriller writers (in fact, it hardly even contains violence) yet I could not turn the pages fast enough. Ignatius handles the moral complexities with a sure hand, reminding me a bit of vintage LeCarre. The accumulated wisdom of an international journalist also feels genuine, and adds greatly to the novel. The fact that this novel did not break out is a sad commentary on the taste of the general readership in this country. Best of luck to Mr. Ignatius, who should have a bright literary future.

Rating:
Summary: Deeper than most action-adventure yarns
Review: At its face value, "A Firing Offense" is a first-rate action-adventure yarn, with description and character development by a real craftsman. At a more satisfying level, Ignatius uses the device of a reporter being drawn incrementally into cooperating with the CIA as an allegory for how our numerous "little decisions" in our lives put us on paths that make the "big decisions" foregone conclusions when we reach them.

Rating:
Summary: Masterful treatment of journalism and its discontents
Review: David Ignatius and I worked together as reporters in the Middle East when we were very young, although for different newspapers. Even then, as a newcomer to foreign correspondence, he impressed us all by his sharp eye for detail, his energy and his ability to make connections between people and events. His knowing, insightful "A Firing Offense," to me at least, represents an extension of Ignatius' marvelous journalism in foreign-affairs which began almost two decades ago. This is a novel of truths--sad truths about the journalism business, sordid truths about the world at large, sorry truths about the way we often treat the perceived losers in life. The plot is tight, the language spare. This is a must-read for lovers of spy-fiction, but I highly recommend "A Firing Offense" to general readers as well. David Ignatius has already proven that he's a master of the game in journalism (his career at The Washington Post is testimony to that); now he's shown that in fiction, too, he's at the top of his craft

Rating:
Summary: A journalist's novel of high-wire journalism and espionage
Review: I am an admirer of David Ignatius's journalistic work, so when I saw a favorable review of his then-new book, I rushed to buy it. Then, I put it on a shelf, where it languished until I rediscovered it a few weeks ago. A story by a journalist about a journalist cum CIA operative, it's a great read. I am not a fan of most thrillers, but Ignatius manages to keep tightening the screw without splattering blood all over the page. The "novelistic" aspects of the book were of a little lower level of craft than the descriptions of high-wire espionage and journalism. The ex-girlfriend and his almost unrequited relationship with her were a little too perfect, his career was a little too successful, and at the end of the book, he wrapped up the loose ends a little too neatly. So he's not John Updike yet, I still give this book high marks and a strong recommendation and I am looking forward to his newest book.

Rating:
Summary: Educational and entertaining
Review: I had just completed Katharine Graham's "Personal History", which taught me a lot about the newspaper business. Now along comes David Ignatius to describe the 'conscience' of a newpaper. About the only superflous role in the plot was the part of Annie Baron--she didn't add or subtract anything. Her blinding ambition didn't quite fit any niche, nor were her romantic moments of any consequence to the otherwise plausible story. As for me, in the September of my years,while daydreaming, I'm now wondering what might have been, if I had gone into the newspaper business after having served as editor-in-chief of my high school paper. Sigh

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining - Great for a long flight!
Review: I read this on a long flight (of all places to Beijing) and was thoroughly entertained the entire time. Great page turner. D.I.'s storyline kept my attention throughout the book. My only negative comment is that the women in the novel are insignificant - the most notable (Annie) was completely undeveloped as a character. And some of the DC references are wrong, but inconsequential. Although not an intellectual challenge, A Firing Offense is entertaining nonetheless. I recommend it.