The Tailor of Panama

By John le Carré
Random House Audiobooks, $25.95
6 hours

ISBN 0679458131

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Sukey's Favorite

Review by Sukey Howard

So many critics have been agonizing over what happens to a writer like John le Carré when the Cold War -- his supposed raison d'etre -- is taken away from him by the vagaries of history. Obviously, if he's as good as le Carré, he shifts the scene and goes on.

The Tailor of Panama is proof positive that he's done it well, shifted the scene to the steamy streets and even steamier politics of Panama City and the Canal Zone and given us Harry Pendel, the tailor of the title and a memorable, most unlikely anti-hero. In this satire of sorts, with a deep bow to Graham Greene, le Carré skewers the non-entity spies of the nineties and their venal runners and makes the preposterous all too possible, even probable.

No author reads his own work as well as John le Carré, and in this tour de force his acting skills shine once again.

Sukey Howard reports on spoken word audio each month. Don't miss her audio book reviews on CNN's Sunday Morning.

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