| Audiobook Review -
The Foreign Correspondent by Alan Furst reviewed by
Robert W. Karp |
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This is a first for me as a reviewer on this site, and I’m in a bit of a
quandary. The Foreign Correspondent is published on audio by Simon & Schuster.
They are the only publisher who has graciously furnished review copies of
several titles. I want to support them and encourage AudioMysteries.com
customers to rent their titles.
So, I really wanted to love this book. The title made me think of two of my
favorite films, Foreign Correspondent, the 1940 film starring Joel McCrae and
the classic film, The Third Man starring Orson Wells. I had images of smoke
filled clubs and shadowy alleys throughout Europe. The book does provide some
great atmosphere. You can almost see the characters.
Alan Furst has an elegant style. The book is beautifully written with wonderful
descriptions of people and places. Indeed, there is a Café Europa where some
action takes place. But that’s the problem with this work, there is very little
action. The period is the years leading up to World War II. Rather than focusing
on what Germany is doing, Furst takes us deep into Mussolini’s fascist Italy.
The story begins with a murder/suicide at a hotel in Paris. Who are these people
and why does it matter? We find out that one is the editor an underground
anti-fascist paper in Italy and the hero of the story, Carlos Weitz, an Italian
émigré and a reporter for Reuters, also secretly collaborates with a group that
publishes the paper.
From here we are lead through the politics and intrigue that surrounds the
resistance to the fascists and Nazis in the late 1930s as Europe prepares for
war. Much of the book is given over to the day-to-day life of a group of people
trying to do the right thing. We learn of the petty indignities they suffer as
well as the danger that confronts them.
But at the end, I wasn’t moved by the story. It seems that we are left in the
lurch, not knowing exactly what has been accomplished and where our characters
go from here. Yes, that is probably what happened to people during that period
of time, but that doesn’t make for a satisfying story.
The audio production of this abridged version is excellent. Alfred Molina is the
reader (he’s currently in the film version of The Da Vinci code) and he has the
accents, tone, and world weariness of all the characters down perfectly. I
enjoyed listening to every minute even when my attention wandered at times.
I bought three copies of this book before I listened to it and I would like them
rented. So, what to tell you? I think for some people The Foreign Correspondent
is worth the effort. If you are interested in the period leading up to the start
of the war in Europe and you love old movies of that period, this is for you.
For readers of traditional mysteries or thrillers, you probably want to skip
this one. But if you love well-written prose and atmosphere you can cut with a
knife try it – you might like it!
I’d like to hear from those of you who rent this title to get your opinions.
Reach me at
customerservice@audiomysteries.com .
About Robert W. Karp - Robert Karp is the owner of AudioMysteries.com. He is an avid
reader of mystery and detective fiction and collects signed first editions of
Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe and other great mystery authors.
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