Illiterarty.com Book reviews and blogs by Bridget

If this was a dance, it would be the Lindy Hop.

If this was an art installation, it would be a functioning concept-SUV made out of tofu.

If this was a book cover, it would be its own - flashy, fun, inviting, two-dimensional and with a really wanky subtitle.

If you want a good spy novel, you really can't beat the master of spy; John Le Carré. He's been around for some time, writing prolifically on the topic of the British secret service, and he was apparently in the British secret service himself in his youth. So not only is he in the know, but he's also a great writer with a cynicism for organisations and governments, and a staunch belief in human nature. The Russia House is no exception in his achievements.

If this was the first meal of the day, if would be a bowl brimming with your favourite guilty breakfast cereal pleasure and ice cold milk (unless you prefer hot). And you’d be hungry. For a while, at least.

If this was a stage act, it would be an obviously talented juggler who does nine balls in time with music for twenty minutes, then cocks and elbows over the mic stand and spends two hours talking about why his wife left him in a self-deprecating manner.