Graham Greene
Our Man in Havana
First edition, presentation copy, 1958
Estimate £1,500–2,000
Green’s novel, set in Cuba, poked fun at the British Intelligence services. Although the novel predates the Cuban Missile Crisis by four years, it appears to somewhat predict the events. Greene writes of Our Man: “Alas, the book did me little good with the new rulers in Havana. In poking fun at the British Secret Service, I had minimized the terror of Batista's rule. I had not wanted too black a background for a light-hearted comedy, but those who suffered during the years of dictatorship could hardly be expected to appreciate that my real subject was the absurdity of the British agent and not the justice of a revolution” (Greene, Ways of Escape). This copy is inscribed.
