The Father of All Secrets

Despite the taunts of his critics, the end of the Cold War did not leave le Carré bereft of plots. His later books addressed international arms dealing (The Night Manager, 1993), the neocolonial exploits of big pharma in Africa (The Constant Gardener, 2001), and the war on terror (A Most Wanted Man, 2008). By the time of his death, in December 2020, le Carré had authored twenty-five novels and a book of autobiographical essays (The Pigeon Tunnel, 2016). A twenty-sixth novel, Silverview, was published posthumously in 2021. And this month, Viking published the first collection of le Carré’s letters, entitled A Private Spy, compiled, edited, and annotated by le Carré’s son Tim Cornwell.