[OZQ]⋙ PDF Sweet Tooth Ian Mcewan 9780224097376 Books

Sweet Tooth Ian Mcewan 9780224097376 Books

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Sweet Tooth Ian Mcewan 9780224097376 Books

In 1972 the Cold War was still making British government and citizens very nervous. Communists were the enemy and subversion of their message was the job of the British Secret Service. This part of the war, however, would not be carried out with killing machines of guns and bombs but through the fiction and non-fiction messages that famous and not so famous authors would pen and circulate widely in professional and non-professional places. No limitation would be placed on their literary efforts and published works. Propaganda need not be overt!

Serena Frome is a former Cambridge student who briefly carries on an affair with a professor who once worked for the British intelligence agency - M5. That agency was often at odds with its sister group M6. In a stunning series of planned events, Serena's lover drops her but guarantees her a job in M5. While there, she is slowly eased into a job of getting a "new" author to write a novel. The story could be about anything and will be funded by the government. As he becomes more well-known, more will happen. Little does Serena realizes her reaction to this writer will be so passionate and little does she realize how jealous her immediate boss will be by her vehement connection. What her new friend pens is far more harrowing and upsetting to Serena.

Sweet Tooth is quite simply an amazing novel about the multiple ways in which smart people maintain an innocent, blind attitude toward what so obviously lacks credibility. Every single character in this story shares that naive mental and emotional stance. Patriotism and passion are stunningly manifest in flagrant stupidity. Upon finishing this novel, should the reader say, "Oh, I wouldn't think like that; I wouldn't miss those clues. I don't hold beliefs like these characters?" Probably not because we are so inundated with our own contemporary propaganda that few truly analyze, critique, and speak out against what is really quite harmful distortion.

Sweet Tooth is a well-written novel that should be read by as many people as possible. Its satiric message is so necessary. This tendency to become star-struck by intelligence and "shared secrets" should be a warning bell if we would see government shaped by the people and not the reverse. Congratulations, Ian McEwan, for a vital novel, a must read for people of all nations!


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Sweet Tooth Ian Mcewan 9780224097376 Books Reviews

My book group chose this book, and I determined to read it, even
though I'm not generally a fan of "postmodern" British fiction. I was
not entirely convinced by McEwan's portrayal of Serena as a young
woman of the 1970s -- her inner life seemed lacking, as she had few
genuine interests and pleasures. No woman in our culture truly thinks
she's "very pretty", without qualifications and exceptions! Her
motivations in choosing men remained a bit opaque to me. And for
an attractive young woman she was remarkably unpursued at a time when
men should have been coming on to her constantly.

I like the way the British class thing was made abundantly clear, as I
often find it mystifying to try to "read" what class characters are
meant to be, and what that means to them and to the other characters.
Here that is laid out nicely. The whole secret spy theme was very
much of its time, in the early 70's, when spy stories, movies, and TV
shows were a very common thing. It is a great metaphor for the
secretiveness and deceptiveness of so many human relationships. In
general I didn't feel that McEwan gave me a strong sense of early
1970's swinging London.

As other reviews have indicated, there's an amazing zinger at the end,
that seemed to change the entire book for me, as I had the dizzying
feeling that I hadn't been reading the book I thought I was reading.
This is apparently a typical element in postmodern "metafictive"
works, as is the book's being about writing. The book has given me
an interest in McEwan's other works.

It's not a quick or easy read, although it isn't dense or long. It
took me about a week, but I was glad I had lingered over it.
The setting for Ian McEwan's latest novel is 1972 London. Cambridge student Serena Frome takes a degree in mathematics but actually wanted to study literature. She lands a position in MI5, the British Intelligence Service, thanks to a recommendation by her tutor and lover, Tony Canning. However, unlike the MI5 on TV's PBS, you won't find any characters like Harry, Ruth, Adam or Ros.
A scheme is concocted and Serena is chosen as an undercover agent, posing as a literary group's representative. She meets Tom Haley, a promising young writer, and convinces him to accept a stipend with no strings attached. The premise is that he'll write something to further Britain's global political aims. Serena falling in love with Tom is not part of the scheme but how can a young, attractive and impressionable young woman resist the charms of such an exciting novelist?
This book is an excellent reading experience but the downside is having to get through the first one hundred or so pages. But persistence will pay off. As Tom Haley's writing career succeeds beyond his wildest imagination and he is more in the public eye, Serena frets about her situation; should she tell him who she really works for and lose him and her job or "kick the can ahead" to another day.
The truth eventually comes out, of course, with glaring headlines and incriminating photos in the London newspapers. But the ending is perhaps not what you'd expect. I'm not giving it away here but it will give you, as a reader and qualified judge, the power to decide what happens next. It also reinforces the old adage about never confiding intimacies to a writer unless you care to read about yourself later.
In 1972 the Cold War was still making British government and citizens very nervous. Communists were the enemy and subversion of their message was the job of the British Secret Service. This part of the war, however, would not be carried out with killing machines of guns and bombs but through the fiction and non-fiction messages that famous and not so famous authors would pen and circulate widely in professional and non-professional places. No limitation would be placed on their literary efforts and published works. Propaganda need not be overt!

Serena Frome is a former Cambridge student who briefly carries on an affair with a professor who once worked for the British intelligence agency - M5. That agency was often at odds with its sister group M6. In a stunning series of planned events, Serena's lover drops her but guarantees her a job in M5. While there, she is slowly eased into a job of getting a "new" author to write a novel. The story could be about anything and will be funded by the government. As he becomes more well-known, more will happen. Little does Serena realizes her reaction to this writer will be so passionate and little does she realize how jealous her immediate boss will be by her vehement connection. What her new friend pens is far more harrowing and upsetting to Serena.

Sweet Tooth is quite simply an amazing novel about the multiple ways in which smart people maintain an innocent, blind attitude toward what so obviously lacks credibility. Every single character in this story shares that naive mental and emotional stance. Patriotism and passion are stunningly manifest in flagrant stupidity. Upon finishing this novel, should the reader say, "Oh, I wouldn't think like that; I wouldn't miss those clues. I don't hold beliefs like these characters?" Probably not because we are so inundated with our own contemporary propaganda that few truly analyze, critique, and speak out against what is really quite harmful distortion.

Sweet Tooth is a well-written novel that should be read by as many people as possible. Its satiric message is so necessary. This tendency to become star-struck by intelligence and "shared secrets" should be a warning bell if we would see government shaped by the people and not the reverse. Congratulations, Ian McEwan, for a vital novel, a must read for people of all nations!