A review of some recent paperbacks
A Most Wanted Man
John Le Carré
Hodder, £ 7.99
Since the end of the Cold War, John Le Carré has transformed his literary voice from that of Spy With The Stiffest Upper Lip On Earth to Angriest Man On The Planet. This edge-of-the-seat thriller begins with a skinny boy who turns up in Hamburg penniless and starving, bearing the marks of protracted torture and a sign which reads "I am a Muslim medical student. I am tired and I wish to stay in your house". He's taken in by a good Muslim family. But in the post 9/11 world, is there such a thing as a "good Muslim"? Not according to the Western spies who gather like vultures, sensing an opportunity to further their various nefarious ends. The book fizzes and sizzles with fury – it's surely no accident that Le Carré's vulnerable, disturbed young anti-hero is called Issa, the name by which Jesus of Nazareth is generally known in many Eastern traditions. Although the pace slows to a crawl for much of the central section, there's a dazzling finish. Arminta Wallace
Planet Google: How One Company is Transforming our Lives
Randall Stross
Atlantic Books, £8.99
I am not entirely comfortable with the idea of one company transforming my life but Randall Stross makes the case that Google is doing exactly that. Planet Google maps out Google's brief history, a history marked by incredible growth for a company that was formed just over a decade ago. Google have remained ahead of their competitors through constant innovation and a unique corporate culture. Ambitious projects such as their planned digitisation of the world's literature and Google Earth underline how the company keeps ahead of the pack. Stross enjoys exceptional access to those at the top of the Google pyramid, but he resists the temptation to stoop to sycophantic flag-waving on the company's behalf. Google is at the forefront of the internet age and this offers a vision of a future held in its inventive hands. Rory Tevlin
Great Hatred, Little Room: Making Peace in Northern Ireland
Jonathan Powell
Vintage, £9.99
Jonathan Powell was Tony Blair’s chief negotiator in Northern Ireland between 1997 and 2007. Hence he is uniquely well-informed about the slog that was the Northern Ireland Peace Process. His account describes a frustrating progression in which “as soon as you have solved one problem you are pitched straight back into another crisis”. Even knowing the outcome, it seems almost impossible as one reads the book that any accord could have been reached between the Republicans, Unionists and the British and Irish Governments, and it took amazing perseverance by all. Powell describes the disparate personalities and negotiation techniques and provides intriguing behind-
the-scenes images. David Trimble flies into many a red-faced rage, Adams hugs trees on the grand English estate of Weston Park, and the narrator himself almost panics at the thought of photographers catching Adams and McGuinness trying to ride Nicky Blairs skateboard through the 10 Downing Street rose garden. Colm Farren
God’s Executioner: Oliver Cromwell and the Conquest of Ireland
Micheál Ó Siochrú
Faber, £9.99
The title is somewhat misleading because up to half the book is not about Cromwell but is a general survey of the period; as such we don't learn anything new about "God's executioner". He spent only nine months in Ireland (1649-50) yet no other English figure is so reviled in Irish history. He is most associated with the massacres at Drogheda and Wexford, where some 5,000 soldier opponents and "an indeterminate number of civilians" were killed. An interesting irony is that it was only after his return to England that the war in Ireland entered its worst phase: guerrilla attacks on his troops were followed by brutal reprisals in which many non-combatants were killed. This lasted three years, at the end of which one-fifth of the population had perished. Cromwell was not a monster but he did monstrous things is the book's conclusion. Brian Maye
Hungry City: How Food Shapes Our Lives
Carolyn Steel
Vintage, £8.99
The Romans, London, food miles, the great sewers of Europe, the wonder of the mall, and spaghetti grown on trees all get a mention, among many other things, in this real history lesson on food, from the kebab shops of ancient Ur to the modern supermarket stranglehold that promises to be with us forever. Along the way, Steel gets her teeth into all the major issues of how a city feeds itself, from where your favourite Friday night feast is grown to the intricacies that link the land to the supply chain of market, supermarket, kitchen, table and the collateral damage of our waste. Also up for discussion are obesity, the balance of human existence, and the destruction of the modern world.
Overall, this is a gutsy, timely reminder of how much we undervalue food and where it comes from, that'll make you question the demise of the local grocer and the power and reach of the supermarket conglomerate. Paul O'Doherty