The American, Martin Booth
The American, Martin Booth
List: $19.95 | Sale: $13.97
Club: $9.97

The American
Previously published as A Very Private Gentleman

Author: Martin Booth

Narrator: Ralph Cosham

Unabridged: 10 hr 1 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/06/2010

Categories: Fiction, Psychological

Synopsis

The locals in the southern Italian town where he lives call him Signor FarfallaMr. Butterflyfor he is a discreet gentleman who paints rare butterflies. His life is inconspicuousmornings spent brushing at a canvas, afternoons idling in the cafs, and evenings talking with his friend, the town priest, over a glass of brandy.Yet there are other sides to this gentlemans life: Clara, the young student who moonlights in the town bordello, and another woman, who arrives with one hundred thousand dollars and a commissionbut not for a painting of butterflies. With this assignment returns the dark fear that has dogged Signor Farfallas mysterious life. Almost instantly, he senses a deadly circle closing in on him, one which he may or may not elude. Part thriller, part character study, part drama of deceit and selfbetrayal, The American shows Martin Booth at the very height of his powers.

About Martin Booth

Martin Booth was an internationally known, Booker-prize shortlisted writer. His Opium: A History is regarded as the definitive book on the subject. He lived in Devon, England, at the time of his death in February 2004.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Leo

This is not at all what I expected. I saw the movie a couple of years ago and I grabbed the book at a bargain bin in London last summer. I was curious to know how different from the movie it was but I wasn’t expecting much from the book. Turns out I was totally wrong, this book hooked me from the ge......more

Goodreads review by Eric_W

Anyone who has seen The American with George Clooney will not recognize this book. The opposite is also true. They are very different. The book is literate; the movie is entertaining (unless you like car crashes and piles of bodies dripping gore in which case you will be bored -- I was not.)​​​​​​ Th......more

Goodreads review by David

Wow! What a book! This was written with a clear sense of skill & imagination. Mr. Farfalla is a man past his prime and approaching retirement. His work has permitted him travel throughout the world, and his earnings have been handsome enough for him to live his life in comfort. However, Mr. Faralla (......more

Goodreads review by Charlotte

Martin Booth's 1990 thriller, originally titled "A Very Private Gentleman", is an interesting and unusual novel. It's funny to me that an edition of the book titled "The American" (so titled because it has just been adapted into a movie starring George Clooney who probably cannot do an English accen......more

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