John Le Carre

John Le Carre

John Le Carre was born in Poole, England on October 19th, 1931 and passed away at the age of 89 on December 12th, 2020.

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John Le Carre Stats: The highest rated book by John Le Carre on Book Notification is The Night Manager, a Standalone novel. The second-highest rated book is A Legacy of Spies (George Smiley #9).

The most read book by John Le Carre on Book Notification is Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, the 5th novel in the George Smiley series. The second most read book is The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (George Smiley #3).

Below is a complete list of John Le Carre books in publication and chronological order, broken down by series. The most popular series by John Le Carre is the George Smiley Series.

List of George Smiley Books in Publication Order

List of The Karla Trilogy Books in Publication Order

List of Standalone Novels in Publication Order

# ReadTitle Avg. Year Book Link
1
8
A Small Town in Germany
1968
2
The Naive and Sentimental Lover
1971
3
8.7
The Little Drummer Girl / A Death in the Family
1983
4
7.7
A Perfect Spy
1986
5
8.3
The Russia House
1989
6
9.5
The Night Manager
1993
7
8
Our Game
1994
8
6
The Tailor of Panama
1996
9
Single & Single
1999
10
8
The Constant Gardener
2001
11
10
Absolute Friends
2003
12
8
The Mission Song
2006
13
7.3
A Most Wanted Man
2008
14
6
Our Kind of Traitor
2010
15
10
A Delicate Truth
2013
16
8.6
Agent Running in the Field
2019
17
7
Silverview
2021

List of Short Stories/Novellas in Publication Order

List of John le Carr Short Story Collections in Publication Order

List of Non-Fiction Books in Publication Order

List of John Le Carre Anthologies in Publication Order

John Le Carre: Biography

John Le Carre (David John Moore Cornwell) was born on October 19th, 1931. John passed away December 12th, 2020 at 89 years old. John Le Carre was born in Poole, England. Le Carre attended University of Bern, Switzerland where he studied Foreign Languages.

John Le Carre (David John Moore Cornwell) is probably best known for his Standalone Novels. There are currently 17 novels available. The first standalone was released in 1968 with the novel A Small Town in Germany. The most recently released novel was Silverview which was released in 2021.

John Le Carre also wrote the George Smiley series which has 9 books including Call for the Dead and A Murder of Quality.

John le Carré has been on the Kono Mystery ga Sugoi! international list in Japan on a couple of occasions. In 1997, his novel Our Game was ranked #9 in the annual guide book. The Tailor of Panama made the list at #8 in 2000.

Le Carré's third novel, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold became an international best-seller and was adapted as an award-winning film of the same name. This success allowed him to leave MI6 to become a full-time author.

In 2017 A Legacy of Spies was listed as one of the Best Spy Thrillers of the year. In 2019 it was Agent Running in the Field that took that same honor.

John Le Carre: Awards & Accolades

John Le Carre has won multiple awards including: The Edgar Award, Grand Master, in 1984 and the Helmerich Award, Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award, in 1990. John Le Carre was also nominated for the International Booker Prize, Outstanding Achievement in Fiction, in 2011.

Le Carre's books have also won multiple awards, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold won the Crime Writer's Association Award, Gold Dagger Award, in 1963 as well as the Edgar Award - Best Mystery Novel in 1965. The Honourable Schoolboy won the Crime Writer's Association Award, Gold Dagger Award, in 1977. A Perfect Spy won the Swedish Crime Writer’s Academy Awards, The Martin Beck Award, in 1986.

The following novels by John Le Carre were also nominated for these awards:

  • Call for the Dead: Crime Writer's Association Award, Gold Dagger Award (1961).
  • Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy: Crime Writer's Association Award, Gold Dagger Award (1974).
  • Smiley's People: Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Best Fiction (1980).
  • The Little Drummer Girl / A Death in the Family: Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Best Fiction (1983). Edgar Award, Best Mystery Novel (1984).
  • A Perfect Spy: Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Best Fiction (1986). Macavity Award, Best Mystery Novel (1987).
  • The Night Manager: The Dead Good Reader Award, The Page to Screen Award for Best Adapted Book (2017).

John Le Carre: Lists & Other Mentions

  • The Spy Who Came in from the Cold was a New York Times: #1 Fiction Best Seller in 1964.
  • Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy was a New York Times: #1 Fiction Best Seller in 1974.
  • Smiley's People was a New York Times: #1 Fiction Best Seller in 1980.
  • The Little Drummer Girl / A Death in the Family was a New York Times: #1 Fiction Best Seller in 1983.
  • A Perfect Spy was a New York Times: #1 Fiction Best Seller in 1986.
  • The Russia House was a New York Times: #1 Fiction Best Seller in 1989.
  • The Secret Pilgrim was a New York Times: #1 Fiction Best Seller in 1991.

Related Authors

The most common authors followed by users who also follow John Le Carre are:

  1. Michael Connelly, author of the Harry Bosch Series.
  2. Lee Child, author of the Jack Reacher Series.
  3. John Grisham, author of the Jake Brigance Series.
  4. David Baldacci, author of the Amos Decker Series.
  5. Harlan Coben, author of the Myron Bolitar Series.

John Le Carre: F.A.Q

When was John Le Carre Born?

John Le Carre was born on October 19th, 1931.

When did John Le Carre die?

John Le Carre died on December 12th, 2020 at 89 years old.

Where was John Le Carre Born?

John Le Carre was born in Poole, England.

What awards has John Le Carre won?

John Le Carre has won the following awards: Grand Master at the Edgar Award (1984) and the Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award at the Helmerich Award (1990).

What book awards has John Le Carre won?

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold: Crime Writer's Association Award Gold Dagger Award (1963), Edgar Award Best Mystery Novel (1965).
The Honourable Schoolboy: Crime Writer's Association Award Gold Dagger Award (1977).
A Perfect Spy: Swedish Crime Writer’s Academy Awards The Martin Beck Award (1986).

What was the first book John Le Carre wrote?

The first novel written by John Le Carre was Call for the Dead, published in 1961.

What was the most recent book John Le Carre wrote?

His most recently released work was A Private Spy: The Letters of John le Carré on December 6th, 2022.

How many books has John Le Carre written?

John Le Carre has written 30 books excluding contributions to anthologies. 9 books in the George Smiley Series, 3 books in The Karla Trilogy Series, 17 Standalone Novels, 1 Short Story/Novella, 1 book in the John le Carr Short Story Collections, 2 books in the Non-Fiction Books.

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    Andrew M.
    Andrew M.
    2 years ago

    John le Carré is one of the great fiction authors in the writing field. In the Naïve and Sentimental Lover novel, the prose is good, and the story is told in a series of subjective implications, half facts, and hints showing Le Carré’s descriptive skills at their best.
    Most of Carré’s classic novels navigate readers through entangled shadow words of espionage with an unmatched knowledge. In his books, words flow, plots are solid, and characters are real. George Smiley was my overall favorite and the most compelling character.
    Call for the Dead is a nicely written spy novel with convincing characters. It’s a phenomenal, poetic, and darkly atmospheric book. I had a chance to watch the Tailor of Panama and the Deadly Affair movies based on the books, and I found them fascinating.

    Michael K.
    Michael K.
    2 years ago

    John le Carre’s actual name was David John Moore Cornwell, and he was a real spy. How did I not know that? It feels like everything I thought I knew about him was a lie.

    To be fair, I knew next to nothing about le Carre except for his name. I am more shocked by the fact that Le Carre is a pen name than I am by his association with the espionage industry.

    My librarian dropped this bombshell in my lap a few days ago, and now, I can’t stop re-reading le Carre’s work. I want to see if I can glean the real-life spy secrets he revealed in the fictional stories he wrote.

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