The Honourable Shoolboy

What a wonderful introduction to the world of Audible Books. We ordered the book with the firm intention of listening on a long and planned car journey across Europe, we decided to test the system but soon, very soon, found we drove everywhere at a snails pace and then would park and wait 'till chapter end to listen to the book. And what a great book, wonderfully read by the well paced and distinctive voice of Michael Jayston, the book has a wide cast but MJ conjures up the characters well and in a very distinctive way - there can be no doubt who the character is, itself a great advantage with this book with its complexities.

The book is the one not seen on TV or film, its the missing book and for those that love the other two in Smiley trilogy this is unmiss-able.

Would I recommend, without a doubt, provided you are happy to drive slowly or wait on stations with your iPod clamped to your ears!

18 people found this helpful

Heaven

Absolutely sublime. I don't know why I waited so long to come back to John Le Carre. The prose. The dark humour. The insights.
And the narrator is perfect for the text. Just perfect.

14 people found this helpful

After Gerald the Mole

This book falls between Tinker Tailor and Smiley's People. Smiley reasons that actions taken by Gerald the mole at Karla's behest may reveal some insight into Moscow Centre's machinations, and perhaps a weakness. Having exposed the mole, Smiley is faced with the task of restoring the Circus's tattered reputation, and to do that he must go on the offensive. A golden thread is revealed in the Far East, and Gerry Westerby, the Honourable Schoolboy, is despatched to tease it out.

This is a wonderful trilogy, and hopefully Audible will make unabridged readings of the other books available too (though the recent BBC radio adaptations are becoming available---it would also be good to see the older BBC Bernard Hepton adaptations as well). Le Carre is an exceptional author, and his unabridged works are magical, even Dickensian.

Michael Jayston, who featured in the BBC television adaptation of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, is delightful as the narrator, and even brings something of Alec Guinness' thoughtful intonation to his reading of Smiley.

This rich and complex middle novel was not adapted for television, so the audio book sits nicely as a bridge between the two faithful adaptations.

20 people found this helpful

An excellent piece of literature

Bridging the gap between Tinker tailor and Smiley's People, the Honourable Schoolboy is a classic example of Le Carré's superb style, although it doesn't actually tie the other two books together, it covers events that occur during that time, mainly in the era of the early 70's during the Vietnam war and the rise of the Kmer Rouge, the main action being set in south east asia, it not only follows the exploits of the min character, Gerry Westerby, (who we first met briefly in Tinker Tailor) but also captures the terrifying situation on the ground in Cambodia under the emerging threat of the Kmers.

Michael Jayston as a reader does what can only be described as a top quality job, the vocalizations of different characters make it a pleasure to follow and easy to discriminate one from another, his George Smiley could just as well actually be Alec Guiness!



If you do not have this book in your collection, do no hesitate to acquire it, it will be worth every penny, and is well deserving of the 5 star review.

9 people found this helpful

For all fans of Ripley, Smiley or decent character

Would you consider the audio edition of The Honourable Schoolboy to be better than the print version?

I've read/listened to both. I enjoyed both. But I think I preferred the audio edition.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Jerry Westerby of course. He's not likeable as such, but he's well drawn by Le Carre and somehow you can imagine a man making his choices.

Which character – as performed by Michael Jayston – was your favourite?

Jerry again - brought to life by Michael Jayston (Peter Guillam in the BBC's Tinker Tailor adaptation). One assumes Michael Jayston's exposure in Tinker Tailor has assisted him, but regardless of that his characterisation works (even the difficult Chinese characters aren't too over the top or false) and Jerry feels alive and driven towards his fate.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The ending, it's a little anti-climatic for me, but I think that is it's strength. It doesn't give you the neatly tied up ending of a Tom Clancy novel, but it's all the better for that. It made me want to read Smiley's People almost immediately.

Any additional comments?

This is not as popular as Tinker Tailor or Smiley's People (perhaps due to the BBC not making an Alec Guinness version?) however it's good and well worth your time. If you've read or seen Tinker Taylor or Smiley's People you should listen to this. It's the stepping stone between them, and while I have always felt it wasn't as strong as the other 2 parts of the Karla Trilogy, it's a good book in it's own right and merely shows how brilliant the other two parts are.

If you like Bond, Bourne, Tom Clancy's creations, Ripley, et al then you should read this and the other two in the trilogy (preferably in order, but it's not essential).

6 people found this helpful

Labyrinthine masterpiece

Never mind if you can't follow the complex twists and turns of this superbly written Cold War spy thriller. This is LeCarré at his peak with well fleshed out characters, an utterly believable Secret Service and a typically dark and rather grim storyline. Cleverly told with insight and surprising humour, the descriptions of people, places and events are fulsome and expert. Certainly not a sparse writer, but I could listen to Michael Jaystons rendition of this superlative work for another 20 hours and not tire of it.
This is the second in the so-called "Karla trilogy", following on from Tinker Tailor, and that's certainly where you should start. Brilliant.

4 people found this helpful

Made me sit in the car to listen

What did you like most about The Honourable Schoolboy?

Another superb offering from John Le Carre. with his usual tight plotting and tight characterisation.

Michal Jayston's reading of this book is absolutely superb. Highly recommended.

3 people found this helpful

Excellent story and narration

What other book might you compare The Honourable Schoolboy to, and why?

I have now listened to all the George Smiley books with Michael Jayston as narrator. All are excellent.

3 people found this helpful

The Circus gets back at Karla

A brilliant book, the reading by Michael Jayston adds enoromously. I have got more out of listening to it than I got out of reading it. I would suggest that you listen to Tinker, Tailor as it will help you make sense of the characters, etc.

2 people found this helpful

Chris from the West Mids

This is the third novel of the 'Karla trilogy' following Tinker, Tailor, Soldier Spy and Smiley's People. Not made at the time by the BBC because of prohibitive costs, as I understand it - more's the pity! I am a total Le Carre addict anyway but I consider this novel to be his best and it must surely rank also as one of the very best of its' genre.

This is a heady mix of espionage, humour, pathos and brutality and is equally rich in characters, not least of whom are George Smiley and Gerry Westerby, and it's all so beautifully crafted and told as only Le Carre can.

The next superlative I will save for the narrator, Michael Jayston who is nothing less than a genius in this field. I have listened to many, many audio books with some excellent narrators but none are his equal.

I absolutely never tire of listening to this and I'm certain that I never could. I can passionately recommend you listen and experience it too! beta inappVoteInfo

11 people found this helpful