Telling Readers What To Think

I mentioned this last year when I’d first heard of it, but now John Le Carre’s latest novel Absolute Friends is finally coming out. It’s the story of two men on opposite sides during the Cold War, who meet at a 60s commune and become friends. The story follows their relationship up until the current war in Iraq. Time has an author profile and book info. I was annoyed that Le Carre’s well-known opposition to the war was handled like this by Time:

With a political statement this pungent, Le Carre knows he runs the risk of alienating his sizable American following, even of coming off as a crank an aging, forgotten ex-spook railing at the world from his Cornish crag.

It’s like they’re prepping the ground for people to take sides with or against the book and providing ammo against the author, instead of letting the book speak for itself. But then again, what was I expecting, it’s Time.