Our Man In Havana: An Introduction by Christopher Hitchens and over 1.5 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more


or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
Trade in Yours
For a £0.40 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Sorry, this item is not available in
Image not available for
Colour:
Image not available

 
Start reading Our Man In Havana: An Introduction by Christopher Hitchens on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Our Man in Havana (Vintage Classics) [Paperback]

Graham Greene
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
RRP: £8.99
Price: £6.29 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £2.70 (30%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon. Gift-wrap available.
Want delivery by Tuesday, 28 May? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details
Trade In this Item for up to £0.40
Trade in Our Man in Havana (Vintage Classics) for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £0.40, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Learn more

Book Description

1 Mar 2001 0099286084 978-0099286080 New Ed

WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS

Wormold is a vacuum cleaner salesman in a city of power cuts. His adolescent daughter spends his money with a skill that amazes him, so when a mysterious Englishman offers him an extra income he's tempted. In return all he has to do is carry out a little espionage and file a few reports. But when his fake reports start coming true, things suddenly get more complicated and Havana becomes a threatening place.

(20000912)

Frequently Bought Together

Our Man in Havana (Vintage Classics) + The Quiet American: Centenary Celebration 2004
Price For Both: £12.28

Buy the selected items together


Product details

  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Vintage Classics; New Ed edition (1 Mar 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0099286084
  • ISBN-13: 978-0099286080
  • Product Dimensions: 13 x 1.3 x 19.7 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 10,535 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

Product Description

Review

"As comical, satirical, atmospherical an "entertainment" as he has given us" (Daily Telegraph )

"He had a sharp nose for trouble and injustice. In Our Man In Havana - a witty send-up of an agent's life - it was Cuba before Castro" (Financial Times )

"Nobody should be anywhere near power who hasn't read (or seen the film of) Our Man in Havana, a powerful satire on the silly world of spying by a man who had experienced it" (Mail on Sunday )

"Graham Greene was a profound and experimental stylist" (Time Out )

"The human story is warm and the satire made me laugh out loud" (Simon Shepherd Daily Express )

Book Description

'No serious writer of this century has more thoroughly invaded and shaped the public imagination than did Graham Greene' Time (20031208)

Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Search inside this book:

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Just Wonderful 21 Feb 2010
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Great cold war "spy" book. I loved it. Written over 50 years ago it is still funny and just so well written. I was expecting a light spy spoof, but this book is just so much more. At just over 200 pages it shows that good writers dont need 800+ pages to develop characters or tension. Highly recommended.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
45 of 51 people found the following review helpful
By Mary Whipple HALL OF FAME TOP 100 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
Gleefully combining the raucous humor of absurdity with slyly subtle wordplay and caustic satire, Greene entertains on every level, skewering British intelligence-gathering services during the Cold War. Setting the novel in the flamboyant atmosphere of pre-revolutionary Havana, where virtually anything can be had at a price, Greene establishes his contrasts and ironies early, creating a hilarious set piece which satirizes both the British government's never-satisfied desire for secrets about foreign political movements and their belief that the most banal of activities constitute threats to national security.

Ex-patriot James Wormold is a mild-mannered, marginal businessman and vacuum cleaner salesman, whose spoiled teenage daughter sees herself as part of the equestrian and country club set. Approached by MI6 in a public restroom, Wormold finds himself unwillingly recruited to be "our man in Havana," a role which will reward him handsomely for information and allow him some much-needed financial breathing room.

Encouraged to recruit other agents to provide more information (and earn even more money), he chooses names at random from the country club membership list and fabricates personas for them, featuring them in fictionalized little dramas which he churns out and forwards to his "handlers." Always careful to fulfill their expectations exactly, Wormold becomes a more and more important "spy," his stories become more creative, his "enemies" find him and his "agents" to be dangerous, and his friends and the real people whose names were used as fictional agents begin to turn up dead.

Skewering British intelligence for being such willing dupes of a vacuum cleaner salesman who never wanted to be an agent in the first place, Greene betrays both his familiarity with the inner workings of the intelligence service, of which he was once a member, and his rejection of Cold War politics. In a conclusion which will satisfy everyone who has ever become impatient with political maneuvering, Greene carries the absurdities of power to their limits, orchestrating a grand finale which shows British politicians at their most venal--and most ridiculous. Ascerbic in its humor and delightfully refreshing in its choice of "hero," this novel is Greene at his very best. Mary Whipple

Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
16 of 18 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely superb 9 Feb 2002
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
A marvellous story about a vacuum cleaner salesman caught up in the world of espionage, purely to buy his daughter a pony for her birthday. The characters are so real that you feel that you know them personally, and the style of writing employed by Graham Greene is an example of what can be done with the English language in the hands of a truly great writer. The chapter in which the British secret service peruse the sketches sent from Havana by Wormold is one of the funniest I have ever read.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?   Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars BEWARE!
Read VERY carefully, note the punctuation. I thought I was buying the book Our Man in Havana plus an introduction by Hitchens so have paid £5. Read more
Published 2 months ago by janet gannon
4.0 out of 5 stars A charming well-written novel
I first read this book when I was 14. I remembered the scene when Segura and Wormold play a game of checkers with miniatures. Read more
Published 2 months ago by William Cohen
5.0 out of 5 stars So good
If you've never read any Graham Greene I'd say this is an excellent place to start, and if you've already read some of his 'more serious' books don't dismiss this one. Read more
Published 3 months ago by fredsaid
5.0 out of 5 stars Found very interesting and enjoyable
Found very interesting and enjoyable. What else can I say, di da di da di da di da di da!
Published 3 months ago by alanm0omi
5.0 out of 5 stars Fun to read
Wormold is a lovable and enjoyable character to follow through his exploits to gain a little extra income for his daughters hobbies
Published 3 months ago by jink
4.0 out of 5 stars There's a depth to this story
This book is the first of Greene's that I've read. For me it is a book for 'grown-ups' I don't mean older in age, I mean more of a mentality thing. It is simply written and funny. Read more
Published 3 months ago by C.C. Bloom
5.0 out of 5 stars ...and now see the film
Plenty of positive reviews already, nothing more to be said really. It is a short but terrific read. Are affairs such as this completely out of date? Read more
Published 3 months ago by RichardP
2.0 out of 5 stars Dated
Not up to Greene's usual standard, in my opinion. Although the language is rich, it lack the plot and depth of many of his other works. Read more
Published 4 months ago by EMB
5.0 out of 5 stars Never quite mad enough
To read this is to be reminded of the spate of "true classics" written in the mid-C20 when novelists still retained the fluency and eloquence stemming from a classical education... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Antenna
4.0 out of 5 stars Memories of cuba
This book brought back to life my memories of visiting Cuba. The worn out elegance, the heat and the people.
A great book filled with humour.
Published 4 months ago by Mr N R Hallam
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums


Listmania!


Look for similar items by category


Feedback


Amazon.co.uk Privacy Statement Amazon.co.uk Delivery Information Amazon.co.uk Returns & Exchanges