The Constant Gardener : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: What is ethics? . . .
Review: . . . "Just a small county east of London" in the view of Foreign Office diplomat Sandy Woodward. Le Carre begins his examination of the modern form of imperialism with the murder of the wife of Woodward's colleague, Justin Quayle. Woodward has reason to know Tessa's murder may not be a random killing. His definition of ethics places him among those once called "the Silent Majority". A civil servant on the rise, he reflects how ethical values have been eroded by surging "globalization". The erosion results from a rising tide of a new imperialism - the multi-national corporation. There are billions of dollars to be made in developing new drugs and ethics aren't profitable. When government policy furthers the process, people like Woodward are there to help it along. How Le Carre's people deal with ethics is the central focus of this book.

The George Smiley trilogy gave us a lexicon of "spy industry" jargon. This book introduces "pharma" as a new buzzword. It identifies a new subversive adversary - the international pharmaceutical corporation. It's a term that is likely to be with us for some time. In the way that his spy novels kept us focused on the Soviets as cruel foes, the pharmas are depicted as influential, determined powers existing nearly uncontrolled. Unlike the image carried by the Soviet antagonists, the pharmas' image is ameliorated by the demand for their products. Everyone wants what they can provide. What cost are we prepared to pay in their bringing it to us? Le Carre bluntly confronts us with that question. Le Carre shows vividly how the response is clearly individual. No agency will front for us in dealing with the pharmas.

A departure from his spy novels, this book is hard to categorize. That's good, since it shows Le Carre has breadth and remains capable of surprise. He's on a campaign here, and wants us to join it. He shows the venality of government agencies under thrall to outside forces and depicts the people representing those elements with skill. Woodward is particularly well portrayed, as is Curtiss, the pharma baron. Justin Quayle is more difficult to diagnose. For a Foreign Office functionary, his ability to "go to earth" seems rather elevated, but Le Carre needs this to give us all the information we require. Only Le Carre could give a persona to someone dead, displaying it without providing a living voice at any point. Tessa speaks through Justin Quayle's memories and interpretation of events. It seems clear that the characters take a back seat to the message of the book.

Justification for the conclusion of this tale seems lacking. It's almost as if Le Carre had tired of writing and had to contrive an ending, no matter how illogical. There's no motivation given for the pilgrimage, especially with prior events related in the story. The scene is very nearly a reprise of Leamas at the Berlin Wall in Spy Who Came In From The Cold. There is the same sense of philosophical failure and bleak future. Clearly, this book will not launch a trilogy in the vein of Smiley's quest. Which is sad, since globalization is a force sweeping the world in ways that would have made Lenin cry out with envy. Le Carre shows how the morality of communism and corporatism stand at par, toppling governments, repressing dissent and manipulating lives. Once again, Le Carre has exposed a world hidden from most of us. He's exposed it with his usual skill at language and characterization. It's a book to be ignored at your peril. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Rating:
Summary: An Ideal In The Shadows
Review: Corporate greed and corporate murder are not exactly new, nor are they particularly fun for many people to read. It's a profound shame that the sting is gone from them for some of us. A book which allows you to FEEL that sting would be a valuable work of art.

But wait, this is not particularly about the corporate scene. That's background, but there's a stronger thread which is about love and about a search for truth. Most of this on the parched plains of Africa. With frequent side-trips to the claustrophobic dance of diplomacy.

Le Carre seems to have built his reputation on spy novels. Spycraft is present here. You see the watchers, the searchers, and the strategists. You see the weaknesses of the (fictional) bureaucratic hierarchy (in the view of the characters). You see the idealism-vs.-life tensions played out. But that's only for starters.

In some reviews there seems to be scant appreciation of the author's character development, which is outstanding here. Similarly outstanding is the skill for nuance in dialogue. In this book you move from Sandy's world to Justin's world, with bumps along the way, and the shift is profound.

You also get a tour of British idiom as a device in character building, and I found that to be delightful.

You also get a picture of corporate greed practiced by way of third-world imperialism. As consciousness-raising, this is more profound than Edward Abbey and as entertaining as Palaniuk, more entertaining than Ballard.

If you've ever felt the pang of idealism, and especially if you've felt it and lost it, then this book is a compelling, worthwhile experience.


Rating:
Summary: Interesting...But, not a treasure.
Review: Enjoyed most of the story, the plot depth and the up-to-date scenario, but the ending was rather unimaginative and trivial. Not, among le Carre' best work; 'The Night Manager' or near his worst; 'The Tailor of Panama' - to avoided at all cost.

Rating:
Summary: 4 stars for pop novel
Review: Le Carre is obviously an excellent writer, and this book is a pleasure to read on a plane, on the deck on a warm summer day, or curled up on the sofa. That is an obvious strength. It's other strength is that is chooses its context from the contemporary world of politics and business, and therefore can help to get your mind flowing around some of the (really unpleasant) realities of modern power. In particular, this work paints a picture of the international structure of the pharmaceutical industry that should have the (salutary) effect of making you look much less favorably on the next ad for prescription drugs that you see on the television. The weaknesses of the book are its formulaic predictability--incredibly capable and strong male figure who was never adequately appreciated but performs amazing feats when it matters, t.v.-style sexual suggestiveness, etc. Overall, a good read. Similar to his The Night Manager.

Rating:
Summary: Secrets
Review: This book poses Le Carre's view of the world - that is, people get stuck in a web of lies but only a few dare to break out and do something about it. And if they do, they pay for their audacity with their very lives.
I think this is book has its strong moments but it also had moments when the reader is forced to put it down out of lack of interest. I think Mr. Le Carre is trying to prove a point here, but he fails at certain paragraphs of the novel.

Rating:
Summary: Decent airplane reading
Review: This is a decent book for reading on a plane or when you're tired; well written enough not to be irritating, but still in the totally undemanding "popcorn" category. It did play on my pet peeves in a funny way that I assume was intentional. At first I thought I was going to end up hurling it across the room. It seemed like one of those "gorgeous, intelligent, rich young woman falls for overweight, middle-aged, pompous jerk" plotlines I get so tired of, presumably aimed at delusional male readers. Fortunately, a few chapters later everything changed for the better. If you need a book of this type at the airport stand, you could do much worse, so don't give up on it right away like I almost did.

Rating:
Summary: Decent airplane reading
Review: This is a decent book for reading on a plane or when you're tired; well written enough not to be irritating, but still in the totally undemanding "popcorn" category. It did play on my pet peeves in a funny way that I assume was intentional. At first I thought I was going to end up hurling it across the room. It seemed like one of those "gorgeous, intelligent, rich young woman falls for overweight, middle-aged, pompous jerk" plotlines I get so tired of, presumably aimed at delusional male readers. Fortunately, a few chapters later everything changed for the better. If you need a book of this type at the airport stand, you could do much worse, so don't give up on it right away like I almost did.