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All John le Carre Quotes
The longing we have to communicate cleanly and directly with people is always obstructed by qualifications and often with concern about how our messages will be received.
John le Carre

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Ideologies have no heart of their own. They're the whores and angels of our striving selves.
John le Carre

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We have learned in recent years to translate almost all of political life in terms of conspiracy. And the spy novel, as never before, really, has come into its own.
John le Carre

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I don't think it is given to any of us to be impertinent to great religions with impunity.
John le Carre

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If there is one eternal truth of politics, it is that there are always a dozen good reasons for doing nothing.
John le Carre

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The monsters of our childhood do not fade away, neither are they ever wholly monstrous. But neither, in my experience, do we ever reach a plane of detachment regarding our parents, however wise and old we may become. To pretend otherwise is to cheat.
John le Carre

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The Cold War was over long before it was officially declared dead.
John le Carre

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There are some subjects that can only be tackled in fiction.
John le Carre

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Remember Graham Green's dictum that childhood is the bank balance of the writer? I think that all writers feel alienated. Most of us go back to an alienated childhood in some way or another. I know that I do.
John le Carre

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A desk is a dangerous place from which to view the world.
John le Carre

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When you're my age and you see a story, you better go for it pretty quickly. I'd just like to get a few more novels under my belt.
John le Carre

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If I had to put a name to it, I would wish that all my books were entertainments. I think the first thing you've got to do is grab the reader by the ear, and make him sit down and listen. Make him laugh, make him feel. We all want to be entertained at a very high level.
John le Carre

46% of people like this quote
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