Books from United Kingdom

Novelist as a Vocation offers Haruki Murakami’s reflections on the craft of writing, the life of a novelist, and the habits that sustain a long creative career. Drawing on his own experiences, Murakami discusses how he became a writer, the importance of originality, and the discipline required to transform ideas into finished novels. He considers the relationship between imagination and reality, explaining how writers develop distinctive voices and create fictional worlds that feel convincing to readers. Beyond practical advice, Murakami reflects on literary recognition, criticism, education, and the pressures of the publishing industry. He questions conventional ideas about literary talent and argues that persistence, curiosity, and a willingness to work consistently are essential to creative development. The book also reveals aspects of Murakami’s personal philosophy, including his commitment to routine, physical exercise, and independent thinking. Part memoir and part meditation on artistic practice, it offers insight into how a novelist builds a sustainable relationship with writing while protecting the freedom to follow an individual creative vision.

In 1985, a seemingly ordinary man walks through the streets of Moscow carrying a plastic shopping bag. Hidden in plain sight, he is Oleg Gordievsky, a senior KGB officer who has secretly been working for British intelligence for more than a decade. As one of Britain’s most valuable spies inside the Soviet Union, he has passed on critical information about Soviet intelligence operations, helping the West understand the Kremlin’s intentions during the final years of the Cold War. But Gordievsky’s double life becomes increasingly dangerous. While MI6 struggles to protect its most important source, the CIA grows suspicious and launches its own investigation to identify the mysterious British informant. Unknown to Gordievsky, the hunt for him leads to Aldrich Ames, a CIA officer secretly betraying American intelligence to the Soviets. When Gordievsky is recalled to Moscow, he faces interrogation, surveillance, and the possibility of execution. His only hope lies in an extraordinary escape plan that must unfold under the watchful eyes of the KGB. Drawing on extensive research and previously undisclosed details, Ben Macintyre reconstructs one of the Cold War’s most remarkable espionage stories. The Spy and the Traitor explores loyalty, ideological conviction, betrayal, and the extraordinary courage required to risk everything for one’s beliefs.