Sometimes I feel that I dislike books/films/plays which are widely feted, either because I'm a contrarian or because my expectations are too high and cannot be met.
In the case of Graham Greene's The Quiet American the plaudits don't get much better but I was none the less hugely impressed. I read the introductory essay by Robert Stone in the Penguin Classic edition I borrowed from the library and until the last page of his essay he seemed highly disdainful of Greene as a flawed catholic imperialist, the characters as mere ciphers and the plot as fraudulent. Very odd.
I've written a couple of notable quotes from the novel below, for my benefit rather for any meaning they may hold to others.
"And bombs aren't for boys from Boston."
"Find me an uncomplicated child, Pyle. When we are young we are a jungle of complications. We simplify as we get older."
Suffering is not increased by numbers: One body can contain all the suffering the world can feel.
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