Product Description

Michael Frayn evokes a time and characters which are as vivid now as if they had appeared before us today, confirming his reputation as one of Britain's most outstanding novelists.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1327 in Books
• Published on: 2003-01-20
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
In Michael Frayn's novel Spies an old man returns to the scene of his seemingly ordinary suburban childhood. Stephen Wheatley is unsure of what he is seeking but, as he walks once-familiar streets he hasn't seen in 50 years, he unfolds a story of childish games colliding cruelly with adult realities. It is wartime and Stephen's friend Keith makes the momentous announcement that his mother is a German spy. The two boys begin to spy on the supposed spy, following her on her trips to the shops and to the post, and reading her diary. Keith's mother does have secrets to conceal but they are not the ones the boys suspect. Frayn skilfully manipulates his plot so that the reader's growing awareness of the truth remains just a few steps beyond Stephen's dawning realisation that he is trespassing on painful and dangerous territory. The only false notes occur in the final chapter when the central revelation (already cleverly signposted) is too swiftly followed by further disclosures about Stephen and his family that seem somehow unnecessary and make the denouement less satisfyingly conclusive. This is a much sparer and less expansive book than Headlong, Frayn's Booker Prize-shortlisted 1999 novel, more understated in its wit, but it is, in many ways, more compelling.--Nick Rennison

Sunday Times
'Beautifully accomplished, richly nostalgic novel about supposed Second World War espionage seen through the eyes of a young boy.'

Peter Kemp, Sunday Times
'Frayn has never written more seductively and surely than in this book.'

Customer Reviews

Pretentious and boring
From the first chapter to the last, this book was painful to read. The plot was ridiculous and the over-used theme of childhood innocence is neither new or exciting.

As a student...
Yes, this book is long-winded, overly nostalgic and pointless, and yes, I hated studying it at A level, but it is that ridiculously over-crafted tone that makes this a perfect exam text. Every character can be seen from infinite angles and argued about for eternity, the plot is unclear and unstructured, but that's exactly Frayn's point. It's almost as if he's writing to be studied, picked apart, and only then understood.

If you want a little bedtime reading, this is perfect - it will send you to sleep. If you want something enjoyable or meaningful, keep well away. And if you're an A level student, stop complaining and just get on with it. Either way you'll have to sit the exam, and if you work with Frayn rather than against him, you'll find it so much easier.

Nostalgic wallow
I thought this was going to be a wartime novel along the lines of 'Enigma' or something like that: however I found it was basically about 6 weeks in the life of a boy in a rather dull road in a rather dull London suburb. I couldn't stand the girl Barbara and her purse - I don't know whether this was intended. By the way I'm 55 years old and didn't have to read the book for AS level.