THE QUIET AMERICAN

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by Graham Greene (1955)

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Alden Pyle is an American stationed in Vietnam in the early 1950s. As the French are being gradually defeated by both nationalists and communists, Pyle sees an opportunity for himself and America. It is Pyle’s mission to realise a Third Force through financial support and military training within Vietnam. His precise role is to import and distribute plastic to the Third Force, whom in turn, transform the plastic into explosives before bombing a public square. Thomas Fowler is an English foreign correspondent working out of Vietnam and is covering the anti-colonial war that is intensifying. His conversations and interactions with Pyle may prove illuminating to the reader, but definitely not so much for Pyle. Pyle is determined to see Vietnam irreversibly changed. Driven by a predatory ideology and ensconced in arrogance, Pyle seemingly believes that any brutal act can further US interests in the region. Alongside this, Pyle pursues the woman who lives with Fowler and shares his bed. But whenever did the US respect boundaries? A smartly written and boldly predictive novel. Fiction. 189 pages.

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DETAILS:

Title: The quiet American

Year: 1955

Author: Graham Greene

Pages: 189

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Book review by Keith Salter