Stamboul Train

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His lips felt dry with a literal thirst for righteousness, which was like a glass of ice-cold water on a table in another man's room. I have had rather a mixed experience with Graham Greene - having loved some of his books and not been as keen on others. I feel this is one that, although I am pleased I read it, dragged somewhat. However, it is clear that Greene made an effort to create an entertaining novel, looking for commercial success and there is a lot of action, with people being arrested, escaping and general subterfuge and love affairs. Despite being a short book, it takes a while to get going but is, ultimately, an exciting tale with many underhand moments. All the characters are somewhat precarious and bringing their struggles to life is where this book succeeds best, along with the sense of being on the train. Of course, bringing marginal characters vividly to life became one of the recurring and defining themes of Graham Greene's novels throughout his long and illustrious writing career.

Orient Express by Graham Greene | Goodreads

That last view was my impression, too, and I'm inclined to agree with Carl Cassegard, who writes: "The Jewish character, Carleton Myatt, is sympathetically portrayed; he is certainly not a caricature, but a complex character that one gets to know as one keeps on reading. Possessing conscience and acting as decently as anyone can expect, he is a better man than most. Furthermore, Greene consistently portrays anti-semitism as a trait of unlikable characters, while the good and sympathetic ones are free from it." Fictional train journeys are always better than fictional air travel - the lengthy journey giving the writer ample narrative time & scope to introduce plot twists & interesting characters. Greene called his less serious work 'entertainment', still, the three nights journey from Ostend to Istanbul on the Orient Express inevitably brings the writer's usual ethical & political contretemps in the form of issues & mindsets saturated in the 1930s worldview: each stop on the itinerary bringing more trouble from the complications of the related place.

Stamboul Train: Alternative Cover

And what does a poor girl from the '30s bring to the table umm couch? Why, her virginity of course! I cringed when that happened & at the lame romantic dialogues that followed ( Greene reminds me of WTV in that sense) — but I needn't have because there's also the world-weary absurd-comic cynical Greene who knows that relationships work only when they are mutually beneficial, that convenience is the name of the game, that in the end it doesn't matter if you miss the bus express so long as you can get on the gravy train! I like Greene, I liked that the book was entertaining, social commentary and political all at the same time, a hallmark of Greene novels. What I didn't like and what really upset me, is the marking out of someone as Jewish. Rant follows! If you are not Christian, not White or not able-bodied you might well identify with it. COMPLETE ENTERTAINMENTS; Stamboul Train; A Gun for Sale; The Confidential Agent; The Ministry of Fear; The Third Man; Our Man in Havana. (Six Volumes in Slipcase) The independent-minded quarterly magazine that combines good looks, good writing and a personal approach. Slightly Foxed introduces its readers to books that are no longer new and fashionable but have lasting appeal. Good-humoured, unpretentious and a bit eccentric, it's more like having a well-read friend than a subscription to a literary review. Carleton Myatt meets Coral Musker on the train to Stamboul, and they both meet Joseph Grunlich, Doctor Czinner, Janet Pardoe, Mr Q.C Savory and Mable Warren. The story explores people's reason for being on the train and the adventures they hope to find or are in fact escaping.

Stamboul Train | Slightly Foxed literary review Graham Greene | Stamboul Train | Slightly Foxed literary review

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Published in 1932 as an 'entertainment', Graham Greene's gripping spy thriller unfolds aboard the majestic Orient Express as it crosses Europe from Ostend to Istanbul. Graham Greene Selected Works Omnibus: The Heart of the Matter, Stamboul Train, A Burnt-out Case, The Third Man, The Quiet American, Loser Takes All, The Power and the Glory