Ways of Escape

The second and final volume of Graham Greene's autobiography has the author traveling across the globe in search of ... inspiration? excitement? sanity? Maybe all of the above. The nuts-and-bolts sections on how his novels were generated are highlights, as are some personal anecdotes about interesting people like Alexander Korda and Evelyn Waugh. The voluptuary element is present in a section about opium dens. But those seeking details of his relationships with women (and his longtime wife) will search in vain.

A Sort of Life

The first volume of Graham Greene's autobiography is cozy and companionable. From what was by all accounts a pleasant childhood in a large extended family, he heads off to Oxford, newspaper work, and early attempts at novel-writing. Some of the darker elements, such as his brief fascination with Russian Roulette and his psychoanalysis at a young age, deepen the self-portrait.

Enigma

Robert Harris's second novel, published in 1995, is one of dozens of books and movie treatments of the Bletchley Park codebreaking operation. In this telling, the technical aspects get full coverage without intruding into the personal drama that drives the plot. Another Harris success.

The Age of Skin

In these essays, the Croatian writer Dubravka Ugresic neatly dances along the line between astringency and bitterness, always keeping the reader on her side. "There's Nothing Here!" is a highlight, an account of the destruction of ex-Yugoslav memorials and landscapes and, with them, national memory.

The Sound of Waves

As I noted in a blog post a decade ago, Isaac Bashevis Singer wrote: "Writers who are truly original do not set out to fabricate new forms of expression. ... They attain their originality through extraordinary sincerity." Yukio Mishima's The Sound of Waves is an excellent example of this precept. It is a simple story of young love, told with beautiful imagery, set on a Japanese fishing island. The closed system of an island allows the author to mine his "own little postage stamp of native soil" for rich details on the fishing life, social hierarchies, and natural environment. 

Archangel

Put together like a Swiss watch, Archangel is an enjoyable Robert Harris thriller set in post-Soviet Russia.

It Would Be So Nice If You Weren't Here

Charles Grodin's memoir of his career in show business should be a template for all who follow. There is enough, but not too much, of his early life, and plenty of detail on the struggles to get going as an actor. Most of all, the book names names and is packed with entertaining anecdotes.

The Ghost

Robert Harris's The Ghost has a few welcome elements that are absent from his other novels. Firstly, it is written in the first person by a narrator with a sly sense of humor and slightly misanthopic bent. There are also five or six first-rate similes, to my mind the easiest way to spot a skilled writer. The story itself is a suspenseful page-flipper with a satisfying conclusion.