Book-a-Week 7: Argo
Book-a-Week 7: Argo by Antonio Mendez
I had heard of the Canadian Caper before Ben Affleck made his movie, so I HAD to go see it. I loved it. I was frustrated by the fact that during the ending credits President Carter was given full credit for ending the Tehran embassy crisis and President Reagan was literally never mentioned, but the main movie itself was not even about that. It's a great story. So, of course, I had to read the book.
The book Argo made me like the movie less. I still love the movie's stylization and it does tell a good story. It just doesn't tell the real story. The Canadians were FAR more involved, the operation went incredibly smoothly (no runway chase scene!), and Hollywood really doesn't need to be patting itself on the back quite as much as Affleck seems to think.
Pros:
1. A fascinating story. "CIA gets escapees from the US Embassy being heroically harbored by Canadian ambassador's in Tehran to safety by making a fake movie." Truth is stranger than fiction. The end.
2. I've read several of these ghost-written history/biography type books. This is by far one of the least painful to read.
3. Mendez does a very good job explaining the background to his story, so even if you're not an expert on the Tehran hostage crisis, or the CIA or [insert relevant topic here] you'll understand it just fine.
Cons:
It didn't set my teeth on edge, but it still wasn't good writing.
MY RECOMMENDATION: Put it on your list. It's interesting.
I had heard of the Canadian Caper before Ben Affleck made his movie, so I HAD to go see it. I loved it. I was frustrated by the fact that during the ending credits President Carter was given full credit for ending the Tehran embassy crisis and President Reagan was literally never mentioned, but the main movie itself was not even about that. It's a great story. So, of course, I had to read the book.
The book Argo made me like the movie less. I still love the movie's stylization and it does tell a good story. It just doesn't tell the real story. The Canadians were FAR more involved, the operation went incredibly smoothly (no runway chase scene!), and Hollywood really doesn't need to be patting itself on the back quite as much as Affleck seems to think.
Pros:
1. A fascinating story. "CIA gets escapees from the US Embassy being heroically harbored by Canadian ambassador's in Tehran to safety by making a fake movie." Truth is stranger than fiction. The end.
2. I've read several of these ghost-written history/biography type books. This is by far one of the least painful to read.
3. Mendez does a very good job explaining the background to his story, so even if you're not an expert on the Tehran hostage crisis, or the CIA or [insert relevant topic here] you'll understand it just fine.
Cons:
It didn't set my teeth on edge, but it still wasn't good writing.
MY RECOMMENDATION: Put it on your list. It's interesting.