Call for the Dead

A writer's death is sometimes a spur to delve into the works. In this case the death in December of John le Carré at age 89 prompted me to seek out his first novel, Call for the Dead, published in 1961. I have seen several of the film adaptations but had never read any of the books until now. It is an excellent work, full of sharp characterizations, especially of the legendary figure of George Smiley, with a riddle neatly solved. Usually with a young writer you see a style develop over years, for good or ill, generally becoming more polished. It would be a shame if le Carré changed much in the later novels, which I hope to get to, because this one is just about perfect.