Hedy's Folly

Hedy's Folly: The Life and Breakthrough Inventions of Hedy Lamarr, the Most Beautiful Woman in the World by Richard Rhodes
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I liked that the book had a lot of information about George Antheil. I've seen Ballet Mechanique (the film) several times, but hadn't realized that the composer for that music had been Hedy Lamar's co-inventor! :D Not in-depth on either Lamar or Antheil, it's a good overview of the basics of their lives and how they happened to intersect and invent together.

Recommended for people interested in World War II-era inventing, or in Lamar/Antheil's work.

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The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John le Carré

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I liked that this was a more psychological novel about espionage. The characters seem a little bland, but there's nothing real about them - even to themselves... They need to *be* their story. Le Carre follows through with this splendidly and it's closer to a mystery than an adventure or suspense story since a lot of the reader's thoughts toward the story are devoted to "who's doing what & working for whom?" / "what's really going on here?"

A definite (& refreshing) change from dashing Mr. Bond. There's no harsh language, graphic violence or sex, and the style isn't as terse as most hard-boiled or noir fiction, but The Spy Who... has that kind of cloak of shadows around it. Even without those devices, though, this is no cozy read. Recommended for fans of espionage fiction (it's a classic of the genre) and for mystery readers who want a little bit different fare from their usual whodunnit.



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