An Officer and a Spy - Whole Book Discussion, Spoilers Allowed (April 2017)

[Caroline]

This thread is for discussing Part 2, the Epilogue, and the rest of this month's moderator pick, An Officer and a Spy by Robert Harris. This is my second time reading the book, and I'm only part way through Part 2 so far, but I love how Harris is able to tie in small details from the first part into Picquart's undoing in this section.

Some criticism of this book that I've read is that Harris followed the facts of the Dreyfus Affair too closely, which left little room for imagination or surprise. What do you think? Do you find his reselling of this event successful?

Personally, I didn't know much about the Dreyfus Affair before I read this the first time and really enjoyed it. It's quite a feat to create something new out of facts others have previously studied and written about in depth. However, I do agree with some critics (though I can't remember whether this is addressed more in the next 150 or so pages) that there is so much going on that the topic of anti-Semitism becomes secondary (or less) to the rest of the story.

[Joy D]

Regarding your question of following the facts of the Dreyfus Affair too closely, it wasn't an issue for me, as I was only vaguely familiar with the case. In fact, I prefer historical fiction to be as accurate as possible. If you know the case, you already know the outcome, so I don't think it is necessary (or even a good idea) to deviate from it. I found the re-telling very successful and enjoyed the book very much. My review is here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...