- Hardcover
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0517055228
- ISBN-13: 978-0517055229
- Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 4,183,051 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The Ipcress File
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Review
‘A spy story with a difference.’ Observer
‘A master of fictional espionage.’ Daily Mail
‘The poet of the spy story.’ Sunday Times
‘The Ipcress File helped change the shape of the espionage thriller…the prose is still as crisp and fresh as ever…there is an infectious energy about this book which makes it a joy to read, or re-read.’ Daily Telegraph
‘The self-conscious cool of Deighton’s writing has dated in the best way possible…a stone-cold cold war classic.’ Guardian
‘Deighton is so far in the front of other writers in the field that they are not even in sight’ Sunday Times
‘Nobody now seriously doubts that Deighton is the most credible of all the spysmiths’ The Scotsman
‘Regarded as the cold war spy thriller that made all subsequent examples of the genre possible…however much of a classic the film is, the book is a completely different proposition. It’s more intricate and far superior…a must for anyone who likes this kind of fiction.’ Loaded
--This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.Product Description
"A dazzling performance . . . A remarkable talent." The New York Times Book Review
What must a lone spy do to survive? The classic spy story that reinvigorated a whole genre!
From the Paperback edition.
What must a lone spy do to survive? The classic spy story that reinvigorated a whole genre!
From the Paperback edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
The movie inspired by Len Deighton(LD)'s The Ipcress File (TIF),first published in 1962, starred a very young Michael Caine as the nameless hero, who is modelled to some extent in the image of his creator. TIF is written in the I-form (first person singular) and readers are therefore dragged into this person's universe. At the start of the book he is transferred from the UK War Office to an undercover counter-intelligence unit. His preferred consumables (Blue Mountain coffee, Gauloises cigarettes) suggest he has been abroad during and after WW II. Despite his lack of a classical education (Eton, Oxbridge), he stands his ground against colleagues who did. At times he is insolent, flippant, ironic, sarcastic, and gradually, scared.
Because strange things are happening: UK scientists are disappearing and moved across the Iron Curtain. In the US, sensitive research data are leaked at an alarming speed and magnitude. What is going on? That is for the reader to find out. The book's venues are London and its periphery, Lebanon and the Tokwe atoll in the Pacific, a nuclear test site.
TIF was LDs debut at the age of 40. He has published some 40 books since then, mostly on espionage during WW II and the Cold War (with 3 trilogies about spy Bernard Samson). His main interests in life show up in his debut:(1)the hero is a military history buff: LD later on published a number of highly acclaimed books on WW II; 2)reflecting the hero's fondness for good food, LD wrote cookbooks;(3)the nameless hero being a technology fan, LD's future books have always remained at the forefront of espionage writing. But fortunately, with LD technology never dominates, not now, not ever.
TIF is prescient on the use of computers, ultra-high speed transmission, new uses of B-52 bombers and submarines, etc. TIF is a wonderful debut of a man who equals Le Carré in terms of atmosphere and English class issues, but sweeps him briskly aside on the issue of modern technology and its uses. A very influential debut.
Because strange things are happening: UK scientists are disappearing and moved across the Iron Curtain. In the US, sensitive research data are leaked at an alarming speed and magnitude. What is going on? That is for the reader to find out. The book's venues are London and its periphery, Lebanon and the Tokwe atoll in the Pacific, a nuclear test site.
TIF was LDs debut at the age of 40. He has published some 40 books since then, mostly on espionage during WW II and the Cold War (with 3 trilogies about spy Bernard Samson). His main interests in life show up in his debut:(1)the hero is a military history buff: LD later on published a number of highly acclaimed books on WW II; 2)reflecting the hero's fondness for good food, LD wrote cookbooks;(3)the nameless hero being a technology fan, LD's future books have always remained at the forefront of espionage writing. But fortunately, with LD technology never dominates, not now, not ever.
TIF is prescient on the use of computers, ultra-high speed transmission, new uses of B-52 bombers and submarines, etc. TIF is a wonderful debut of a man who equals Le Carré in terms of atmosphere and English class issues, but sweeps him briskly aside on the issue of modern technology and its uses. A very influential debut.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This is the grimy antidote to Bond where the lead character has the Burnley accent. Deighton's espionage world is full of crooks rather than spys on both sides. He portrays a world where the driving force is not a simple Left/Right ideology but rather out and out greed.
It has a Chandleresque prose style fitted into a UK setting; actually a very London-centric setting.It has an odd feeling of being written as a reaction to something and I can only assume it is Ian Fleming's stuff. It is very anti-Establishment and early 60's referring to Harry as 'he could have been a John Osborne hero'. This feeling goes with a general world weariness.
He gives a knowing wink at the real-life UK traitors but unfortunately he didn't quite know the whole story in 1962. This is not Mr Deighton's fault and does not weaken his valid premise that the spy world may have more to it than duffing up the Russkies.
Without giving away the plot there is also some prescient stuff on brain-washing and industrial espionage for which the author deserves credit.
Enjoyed this more than I expected. It has a curiosity value to see early 60's political attitudes, it offers a different kind of espionage raison d'etre typified by the 'Ipcress' concept and it keeps you turning the pages.
It has a Chandleresque prose style fitted into a UK setting; actually a very London-centric setting.It has an odd feeling of being written as a reaction to something and I can only assume it is Ian Fleming's stuff. It is very anti-Establishment and early 60's referring to Harry as 'he could have been a John Osborne hero'. This feeling goes with a general world weariness.
He gives a knowing wink at the real-life UK traitors but unfortunately he didn't quite know the whole story in 1962. This is not Mr Deighton's fault and does not weaken his valid premise that the spy world may have more to it than duffing up the Russkies.
Without giving away the plot there is also some prescient stuff on brain-washing and industrial espionage for which the author deserves credit.
Enjoyed this more than I expected. It has a curiosity value to see early 60's political attitudes, it offers a different kind of espionage raison d'etre typified by the 'Ipcress' concept and it keeps you turning the pages.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
When Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman were looking for a spy to contrast with James Bond, they couldn't have hit on a better one than Len Deighton's creation. Known in the film version as Harry Palmer and played with youthful cheek and a cocky, Cockney swagger by Michael Caine, in the book our spy is older, from the North and nameless - though he may once have been a "Harry" in one of the many guises he has adopted in his life as a secret agent. Nonetheless, in both guises the hero remains witty (in all senses of the word) and endowed with both a half-easy charm and a gift for medium-rare-to-overdone insubordination that makes him easy to warm to.
The events of the novel may be even lower key than in the film of the same name - no swirling, technicolour lights and spinning hypnotic discs, no "Now listen to me" - but they are just as gripping, if not more so. This is the Cold War game as played by men already hardened by their participation in the hot war that preceded it, mildly bemused by the webs of intrigue that surround them at the same time as they are embittered by the grey pettiness of the form-filling and chit-obtaining that form the rituals of civil service life. With this base for his dish, Deighton throws in neutron bombs, brainwashing and betrayal to create a fine novelistic dish, which feels real in a way Bond - even in Fleming's original novels - never managed and is suffused with moments of real humour and humanity Fleming's tales never possessed.
The events of the novel may be even lower key than in the film of the same name - no swirling, technicolour lights and spinning hypnotic discs, no "Now listen to me" - but they are just as gripping, if not more so. This is the Cold War game as played by men already hardened by their participation in the hot war that preceded it, mildly bemused by the webs of intrigue that surround them at the same time as they are embittered by the grey pettiness of the form-filling and chit-obtaining that form the rituals of civil service life. With this base for his dish, Deighton throws in neutron bombs, brainwashing and betrayal to create a fine novelistic dish, which feels real in a way Bond - even in Fleming's original novels - never managed and is suffused with moments of real humour and humanity Fleming's tales never possessed.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A great book about 60's London
This is one of my favourite books, I've read it four times now. In fairness I think you need to read it more than once as the plot takes a bit of working out. Read more
Published 4 months ago by A. Stanhope
Not an easy read
I found this book very heavy going but stuck with it and in the end it quite rewarding. A fact driven plot which was difficult to follow and to me written in a jerky sort of way. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Mr. K. Wareham
Not like the film. Shame!
The first thing I have to say is that I was disappointed - it was nothing like the film. Normally that would be a compliment because, more often than not, films tend to be the... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mieczyslaw Kasprzyk
Kindle users denied cover
This is an excellent thriller that is more demanding on the reader than the average page turner. I enjoyed it immensely. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Mr. J. S. Whitehead
As good as I remember
I first read this book when it came out in the early sixties. Re-reading it now reminded me what a good spy writer Len Deighton is. Read more
Published on 7 Jan 2010 by Derek Watkins
Quirky Style
I didn't really enjoy this book. The writing seemed quite quirky and old-fashioned to me. I have watched the IPCRESS File movie for many years, where the slightly down-at-heel,... Read more
Published on 23 April 2009 by Martyn Davies
A book that makes every moment real
By writing from the spies viewpoint Deighton actually makes you feel part of the action. You have to work it out as his un-named character does. Read more
Published on 13 April 2007 by Andrew Dalby
What they never tell you is how FUNNY this book is.
Deighton has given his nameless narrator a wry, dry wit. Even if you don't like spy stories (and this one's a cracker), the style will grip you. Read more
Published on 9 Sep 2000 by mrs louise h steele
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