Loving Graham Greene

by Gloria Emerson

This marvelous debut novel by former New York Times correspondent and National Book Award--winner Gloria Emerson is a witty and deeply affecting portrait of the stubborn hopes and disillusionment of a privileged woman who dreams of making a difference in the world.

The polite correspondence she shares with the novelist Graham Greene inspires Molly Benson to see him as her moral guiding light. After his death in 1991, Molly sets out to honor his memory by going on a mission with two friends to Algeria at the start of that nation's brutal civil war, intending to save intellectuals from Islamic fundamentalist hit squads. But nothing in her genteel existence has prepared her for the perilous journey on which she and her humble delegation are about to embark.

Genres: Fiction

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Gloria Emerson was an American author, journalist and New York Times war correspondent. Emerson received the 1978 National Book Award in Contemporary Thought for Winners and Losers, her book about the Vietnam War. She wrote four books, in addition to articles for Esquire, Harper's, Vogue, Playboy, Saturday Review and Rolling Stone.

Reviews

[Pascale · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books of all times. Written by a high-strung journalist who only ever wrote this piece of fiction, it tells an unforgettably quirky story. The protagonist, a rich middle-aged woman with a passion for Graham Greene, whom she once met briefly in Antibes, becomes obsessed with the idea of doing something in memory of the great man after his death leaves her more at a loose end than ever. She alights on a plan to fly to Algeria, at a time when Islamic fundamentalists are spreading terror and in particular targeting intellectuals. With the help of a clueless friend and a cowardly graduate student, she sets off hell-bent on using her inherited money to save lives. Alas, her overtures to the fundamentalists are greeted with predictable suspicion and the amateur diplomats get beaten up. This is an unjustly neglected masterpiece with many valuable lessons about cultural misunderstandings and how difficult it is to do good in this complex world of ours.

[Chelsea Temple · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book does not have a happy ending. It does not even have a bittersweet ending. It is sad...just plain sad. And every now and again, a sad book is refreshing. It brings you back to reality, reminding you that the world is full of horrible, sad things. Any book that makes me feel such strong emotions, even if those emotions are negative, is a book worth reading.

[Dayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goodreads Pascale's Review (it was so good, I don't think I could have topped it).

One of my favorite books of all times. Written by a high-strung journalist who only ever wrote this piece of fiction, it tells an unforgettably quirky story. The protagonist, a rich middle-aged woman with a passion for Graham Greene, whom she once met briefly in Antibes, becomes obsessed with the idea of doing something in memory of the great man after his death leaves her more at a loose end than ever. She alights on a plan to fly to Algeria, at a time when Islamic fundamentalists are spreading terror and in particular targeting intellectuals. With the help of a clueless friend and a cowardly graduate student, she sets off hell-bent on using her inherited money to save lives. Alas, her overtures to the fundamentalists are greeted with predictable suspicion and the amateur diplomats get beaten up. This is an unjustly neglected masterpiece with many valuable lessons about cultural misunderstandings and how difficult it is to do good in this complex world of ours.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked it up at a used book sale because i love Graham Greene and remember liking Emerson's Winners and Losers. It starts off strong but about halfway through it starts to flounder. Although she tries to emulate Graham Greene's writing, she's just not up to it. The characters are all single dimensional and you end up not liking any of them. More importantly, you don't believe any of them are real. It may work if you just read it as a comedy.

[Stephanie Carne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good - but you have to be a Graham Greene fan to read this book. There are lots of references to Greene's books so I think if you haven't read any, you might not get it. I have read a lot of Greene, although some a long time ago. It does bring back a lot of memories of how bad things were in Central America in the 1970s and she does write in a style similar to Greene, with tension building. The Algerian civil war provides an interesting backdrop.

[lainey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Graham Greene fans will find this a disappointment. The writer is obviously in love with Graham Greene and so wrote a character who is thus obsessed. However, the writing pales and it plods along and sounds too dreamy. I don't recommend this at all.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75

I liked it, maybe not immensely, but the imagined relationship between author and activist is worth it. Fiction with a hook in reality.

[Bob Peru · Rating 4 out of 5]

homage.

[Joseph · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not worth the time. did not enjoy at all