Imagine being alive as this book was released and being able to live vicariously in Havana through Greene’s words as Castro entered the city – casting out the crab lunching, daiquiri drinking, White suited, Hillman driving European wastrels in his path. No wonder it was such a success at the time.
Perhaps its longevity comes partly from how he got lucky with the zeitgeist, but surely much of it is because Too Few Novels do this sort of humour anymore. Just as too many goodreads reviewers remind one of the overly serious tweeter replying to the satirical tweet, so too many modern novels lack the witty prose evident throughout this entertainment.
Greene introduces his characters, and dispatches them, wisely – and crowns miniature bottles of whiskey at just the right moment of the game too.
I’d originally chosen five stars and left it at that - but it felt a little like drawing an unknown construction and assuming everyone will see the vacuum cleaner.
For those of you more like The Chief, I hope I’ve scaled down the Drawings suitably. For those of you more like Beatrice. Be like Beatrice, Beatrice knows what’s happening.