The plot is notable for its gritty realism; like noir writing, this form of literature relies on tension and a patient build, and 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' is absolutely masterful on this count. Le Carré totally swerves reader expectation by beginning his tale in a minor public school, where a new French master, a man named Jim Prideaux, has been hired. Witnessed through the eyes of his young charges, it soon becomes obvious (though not to them) that he is a former spy. We then cut to a day in the life of forcibly retired spy George Smiley, a middle aged book lover whose wife has left him. After a frustrating day in which he lost a prized book at his club, he is suddenly recruited to track down a mole who has penetrated the heart of the Circus (the London headquarters of SIS) by Oliver Lacon, the Civil Service liaison to Mi6. This mole may have been responsible for the failure of the operation in Czechoslovakia that led to Prideaux's shooting, capture and interrogation at the hands of the Soviets, as well as the fall of Control, the former head of the Circus and Smiley's friend, who died soon after his removal from power. The Circus mole, Smiley surmises, must be one of four men: Percy Alleline (a dour Scot, heading up the Circus in the aftermath of Control's dismissal, "Tinker"), Bill Haydon (flamboyant, sophisiticated, intelligent, the darling of the Circus, "Tailor"), Roy Bland (a left wing academic in charge of intelligence gathering in Mother Russia itself, "Soldier") or Toby Esterhase (a Hungarian who aspires to be an English gentleman and is in charge of the "lamplighters" department, "Poorman"). Smiley's investigation unpicks every strand of Operation Testify until he is sure about the identity of the mole and contrives a trap...
Probably the first thing that springs to mind when writing about this book is that it is certainly not "genre fiction" or "low culture" in any way. John Le Carré is a literary master who just happens to have written about what he knows, which happens to be espionage during the Cold War. It is, from the start, beautifully paced and masterfully plotted (I expected this), but what was more unexpected is how subtle and nuanced the narrative voice is, an omniscient third person narrator who dips in and out of character's heads with the facility of George Eliot, filtering thoughts, feelings and perspectives to form a jigsaw of events which eventually, painstakingly, reaches a climax which is itself beautifully understated. The entire novel burns with a quiet intensity that demands attention. Meanwhile, large chunks of recounted monologue build the characterisation of the various protagonists, as well as filling in the labyrynthine backstory. The huge swathe of tradecraft jargon adds authenticity and colour to the narrative, and the dialogue makes each character's foibles apparent very cleverly.
All in all, this is quite simply a classic, as far away from the crash-bang-wallop of James Bond as it's possible to get, a gritty tale made all the more poignant because of the defections of the real life "Cambridge Five", who Le Carré knew personally. The world-weary and cynical manner of the protagonists reflects a world of stalemates and uncertainties; this is not a book about heroism, it is a book about mental puzzles and one-upmanship, about ambivalent loyalties and bruised egos. Highly recommended.
