The Third Man by Graham Greene
Title: The Third Man
Author: Graham Greene
First Published: 1949
Page Count: 160 pages
Summary
British pulp western author Holly Martins arrives in Vienna seeking his old friend Harry Lime, who has summoned him with promises of a job and a place to live. It's just after the Second World War and the city is divided into four zones controlled by the four allied powers of Great Britain, France, USA and the USSR. Upon arrival however, Holly discovers his friend has died tragically just before his arrival. He also learns from a British police officer (Major Calloway, the Narrator), that Harry had been suspected in serious black market activity. Determined that his friend is innocent, Holly begins to do his own investigation into the death of Harry Lime with the intention to clear his friends name.
Background to the book
The Third Man was never actually intended to be published for the general public. It was written as a working-draft screen play to the movie The Third Man; a collaboration project with film noir director Carol Reed . In the introduction to the book it is explained how Greene would often write screenplays in novella form in order to solidify characters, atmosphere and plot lines in his head. It later was published along with another short novella Greene wrote called The Fallen Idol which WAS intended for the general public to read.
My thoughts
I had to wait a little while before a copy of the book could arrive via inter-library loan, but once I did get it into my hands, this was quite an enjoyable read! I breezed through it in just over a day, although admittedly that would be more likely due to the shortness rather then personal engagement.
It must be a combination of all the crime/mystery TV and books that I read, but the storyline was pretty straightforward and as a working draft, really that's all one can expect. It IS an interesting story though. A good blend of mystery, suspense and a little bit of humour as well; all one can ask for in a tale of mystery! Greene is also excellent at creating the dusty, dirty, dishevelled city that was Vienna after the war in so few words.
So, is this book deserving to be in the list? Well, yes and no. It's certainly no technical masterpiece. It really does read much more like an outline then a fully fleshed out novel (it's not -quite- “Holly goes here. He does this. He learns that. So then he goes here and does this and another. The end.” But it's close) It is very interesting to compare this novel written by Greene with the final movie that was produced, especially noticing which changes were made between the two; some quite severe not the least of which was the mood at the end of the story! (For the record, I much preferred Greene's more positive ending then the movie)
Just as happen-stance, in the week that I read this book, in a variety of references I came across people quoting the most well known line from the movie:
“Like the fella says, in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. “ - Harry Lime
And in each of these situations Graham Greene was given credit for it; although it never appears in the book! In fact, in the introduction Greene admits the line came from the brilliant adlibbing of Orson Welles during filming.
I would definitely recommend the book if you can get your hands on a copy, but mostly for the comparison between it and the film rather then stand-alone entertainment.
Bonus Review!
The copy I managed to get from the library was an edition that was printed along with the short story The Fallen Idol. As I mentioned above, this IS a story Greene intended to be published for the public. In fact he describes it in his introduction as a story he wrote to keep him occupied while on a long boat ride. It's very short and hooks you immediately. I finished it in an hour, infact.
Oh my goodness, this story is beautiful and heart wrenching. The description from the back cover reads:
“Philip is a small boy left in a large Belgravia house with Baines, the butler, and 'thin, menacing, dusty' Mrs. Baines. And Baines has a girlfriend. Soon Philip is caught up in other people's darkness...”
On the one hand, this is a very straightforward “coming of age” story as a young boy is forced to grow up far too quickly and deal with adult affairs that get out of control. On the other hand, it's so much more complex then that as you begin to realise that the disasters Philip believes to be happening might not be quite as dramatic as they appear, adding to the final tragedy.
I apologise if I sound so vague, but it is difficult to truly talk about the complexities of this story without giving the entire story away!
I highly encourage you to track this down and read it, and then we can talk for hours!
Author: Graham Greene
First Published: 1949
Page Count: 160 pages
Summary
British pulp western author Holly Martins arrives in Vienna seeking his old friend Harry Lime, who has summoned him with promises of a job and a place to live. It's just after the Second World War and the city is divided into four zones controlled by the four allied powers of Great Britain, France, USA and the USSR. Upon arrival however, Holly discovers his friend has died tragically just before his arrival. He also learns from a British police officer (Major Calloway, the Narrator), that Harry had been suspected in serious black market activity. Determined that his friend is innocent, Holly begins to do his own investigation into the death of Harry Lime with the intention to clear his friends name.
Background to the book
The Third Man was never actually intended to be published for the general public. It was written as a working-draft screen play to the movie The Third Man; a collaboration project with film noir director Carol Reed . In the introduction to the book it is explained how Greene would often write screenplays in novella form in order to solidify characters, atmosphere and plot lines in his head. It later was published along with another short novella Greene wrote called The Fallen Idol which WAS intended for the general public to read.
My thoughts
I had to wait a little while before a copy of the book could arrive via inter-library loan, but once I did get it into my hands, this was quite an enjoyable read! I breezed through it in just over a day, although admittedly that would be more likely due to the shortness rather then personal engagement.
It must be a combination of all the crime/mystery TV and books that I read, but the storyline was pretty straightforward and as a working draft, really that's all one can expect. It IS an interesting story though. A good blend of mystery, suspense and a little bit of humour as well; all one can ask for in a tale of mystery! Greene is also excellent at creating the dusty, dirty, dishevelled city that was Vienna after the war in so few words.
So, is this book deserving to be in the list? Well, yes and no. It's certainly no technical masterpiece. It really does read much more like an outline then a fully fleshed out novel (it's not -quite- “Holly goes here. He does this. He learns that. So then he goes here and does this and another. The end.” But it's close) It is very interesting to compare this novel written by Greene with the final movie that was produced, especially noticing which changes were made between the two; some quite severe not the least of which was the mood at the end of the story! (For the record, I much preferred Greene's more positive ending then the movie)
Just as happen-stance, in the week that I read this book, in a variety of references I came across people quoting the most well known line from the movie:
“Like the fella says, in Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock. “ - Harry Lime
And in each of these situations Graham Greene was given credit for it; although it never appears in the book! In fact, in the introduction Greene admits the line came from the brilliant adlibbing of Orson Welles during filming.
I would definitely recommend the book if you can get your hands on a copy, but mostly for the comparison between it and the film rather then stand-alone entertainment.
Bonus Review!
The copy I managed to get from the library was an edition that was printed along with the short story The Fallen Idol. As I mentioned above, this IS a story Greene intended to be published for the public. In fact he describes it in his introduction as a story he wrote to keep him occupied while on a long boat ride. It's very short and hooks you immediately. I finished it in an hour, infact.
Oh my goodness, this story is beautiful and heart wrenching. The description from the back cover reads:
“Philip is a small boy left in a large Belgravia house with Baines, the butler, and 'thin, menacing, dusty' Mrs. Baines. And Baines has a girlfriend. Soon Philip is caught up in other people's darkness...”
On the one hand, this is a very straightforward “coming of age” story as a young boy is forced to grow up far too quickly and deal with adult affairs that get out of control. On the other hand, it's so much more complex then that as you begin to realise that the disasters Philip believes to be happening might not be quite as dramatic as they appear, adding to the final tragedy.
I apologise if I sound so vague, but it is difficult to truly talk about the complexities of this story without giving the entire story away!
I highly encourage you to track this down and read it, and then we can talk for hours!