
Our Graham Greene in Havana - lermontov
https://www.historytoday.com/history-matters/our-graham-greene-havana
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jihadjihad
Always throws me off when I see his name because I first think of the actor
rather than the author!

The part about being prophetic about the Cuban Missile Crisis was interesting,
and I think I'll add _The Quiet American_ to my reading list:

 _[Greene 's] previous full-length novel, The Quiet American (1955),
anticipated tragic US military entanglement in Vietnam a decade later.
Meanwhile, his Havana-based story would prove remarkably prophetic about
another key Cold War episode. Using an Atomic Pile vacuum cleaner as a model,
the charlatan Secret Service agent fools his bungling bosses in London with
sketches of ‘big military installations under construction’ in the mountains
of eastern Cuba, including a ‘large concrete platform’ and ‘strange machinery
in transport’._

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telesilla
It's a powerful book, I certainly recommend it. Also his book about a priest
on the run in Mexico, the Power and the Glory. He's truly a great author and
teller of strong stories.

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smueller1234
Agreed on Greene bring a great author and story teller! Of all the Greene
texts I've read, I had mixed feelings about The Power and the Glory when I
read it a decade or so ago. I imagine if prior to picking it up I had read
more about the historical context it is set in, I would've gotten more out of
it.

For a thoroughly enjoyable read I'd also recommend The Comedians.

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ljf
As a teenager Brighton Rock blew me away, and still does. The book and film
both conjure the time and the people so well for me.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brighton_Rock_(novel)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brighton_Rock_\(novel\))

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C1sc0cat
When I first read it I wasn't aware that some of my relatives by marriage
where off course bookies in Birmingham Pre WW2 and post.

They would have known the gangsters that Brighton rock uses as the base for
some of the characters. One of my cousins who is an actor has actually
appeared in a theatre version of Brighton Rock.

BTW this was when off course book making was illegal in the UK

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jhbadger
"Our Man in Havana" is also interesting because it inspired John le Carré's
"The Tailor of Panama" (1996; movie in 2001).

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somberi
Also a good book to read, if you like Graham Greene:
[https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12688827-the-man-
within-...](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12688827-the-man-within-my-
head)

