The works of John le Carré are among the most beloved spy thrillers of all time. So it was a perilous task that author Nick Harkaway, one of le Carré's sons, set out for himself. On this week's episode, Harkaway discusses how he picked up the torch from his father, who died in December 2020, to write a new tale starring George Smiley, the Cold War spy who ha ... Show More
Sep 11
The Best Books of the 21st Century: Taffy Brodesser-Akner on ‘The Corrections’
If you were a reading adult in the early 2000s, you probably tackled, or at least heard about, “The Corrections,” Jonathan Franzen’s best-selling and much discussed book.The novel won the National Book Award, was a Pulitzer finalist, and an Oprah Book Club pick.The book arrives a ... Show More
47m 14s
Aug 29
Book Club: Let’s Talk About ‘London Falling’
At the center of Patrick Radden Keefe’s new book, “London Falling,” is a mystery: In 2019, a young man named Zac Brettler disappeared, and a few days later his body was found in the Thames River. Surveillance footage showed what appeared to be Zac jumping off the balcony of a nea ... Show More
54m 5s
Oct 2023
Spies, Sex, and John le Carré
In 1963, a British spy writing under the pen name John le Carré published a novel that shot to the top of best-seller lists worldwide. After the success of “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold,” le Carré became known as the king of the modern spy thriller, and his gritty, political ... Show More
45m 51s
Apr 2025
Classic Debate: Ian Fleming vs John le Carré
They are the titans of the spy novel, who have elevated thrillers to the level of literary fiction. Much imitated, much adapted by the big and small screens, Ian Fleming and John Le Carré have painted our picture of post-war espionage: Fleming through the dashing figure of James ... Show More
1h 6m
May 2021
#330 Nick Hornby: Getting Published, Dealing With Rejection
Nick Hornby is the author of many novels, including High Fidelity, About a Boy, Juliet, Naked and others, and now he has a new book Just Like You which I thoroughly enjoyed and is out in paperback. He is also the author of Fever Pitch, a book on his life as a devoted supporter of ... Show More
29m 29s
Sep 2023
The Spy Novels You Can't Miss: Oliver Webb Carter's Top 5 Best Picks
<p>Welcome to Spybrary, a podcast for spy book enthusiasts. In episode 215, I had the pleasure of hosting special guest Oliver Webb Carter, a historian and the founder of <a href= "https://aspectsofhistory.com/" target="_blank" rel= "noreferrer noopener">Aspects of History,</a> a ... Show More
55m 56s
<p><!-- wp:paragraph --></p> <p><a href="https://geni.us/KsPbuh" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">Karla's Choice</a> sees the return of John le Carré's George Smiley. Today we're joined by his son, the author Nick Harkaway, along with John le Carré fans Steve Ritterman and Matthew ... Show More
<p><!-- wp:paragraph --></p> <p>Welcome to another thrilling episode of the Spybrary Spy Book Podcast! Today, we have the exceptional <a href= "https://merlenygate.com/" target="_blank" rel= "noreferrer noopener">Merle Nygate</a> joining us to dive deep into her latest espionage ... Show More
