The Quiet American
I just finished reading Graham Greene’s “The Quiet American” and continue to be mystified by Greene’s reputation. I don’t see anything special about him. The novel takes place in Vietnam but might as well be called “The Quiet Vietnamese” for all the dialogue they get. Or perhaps it could be called “The Quiet Critique” since most of the plot is really about a cynical Englishman and foolish American arguing over a young Vietnamese woman while a war takes place in the background, as if Greene finds the French oppression of Vietnamese a banal evil. The novel is entirely from the point of view of the English reporter.