academiccompositionab
Empowerment Equalizer
SSaragian
Antony Sammeroff
Ann Sterzinger
Rodney
RJ
busterjames
cainusmaxus
Craig FitzGerald
David Heleniak
Caity & Dan Greene
keirmartland
Keith Preston
Bill the Butcher
ljp711
MRDA
Jack Donovan
Rachel Haywire
comrade hermit
Michael
Vince
Regan
robertstark2014
Noonan
S E Pearson
Rachel Haywire
Nexus X HumectressSponsored by Harvard University Press
Marina Warner
Temporale
During the pandemic I picked up the Catholic missal of my childhood, and it made me think again about its function: marking the passage of time.
Martin Filler
The Architect and the Rock Star
Two new books of personal photographs, one by Phyllis Lambert, the other by Patti Smith, have thematic congruities but markedly different tones.
Matthew Desmond
The High Cost of Being Poor
The American government gives the most help to those who need it least. This is the true nature of our welfare state.
John Banville
Special Correspondent
As a public man, John le Carré was a model of probity and rectitude; in his private life, he was not above double-dealing.
Eric Foner
A Regional Reign of Terror
Most Americans now grasp that violence was essential to the functioning of slavery, but a new book excavates the lesser known brutality of everyday Black life in the Jim Crow South.
Free from the Archives
“In 2015, Americans spent 9.78 billion hours on federal paperwork,” wrote Cass R. Sunstein in the Review’s April 4, 2019 issue. “The Treasury Department, including the Internal Revenue Service, accounted for the vast majority of the total: 7.36 billion hours.” Identifying a problem known as “sludge”—paperwork and other administrative burdens—Sunstein shows how various governmental departments succeed or fail in helping their constituents, depending on how much red tape they put in the way.
Cass R. Sunstein
Wading Through the Sludge
“Paperwork burdens can make it difficult or impossible for people to enjoy fundamental rights, such as the right to vote or to obtain life-changing benefits—or to avoid crushing hardships…. It is often tempting to put off administrative burdens until another day. That day may never come, even if the consequences of delay are quite serious.”
Attack the System
Categories: Arts & Entertainment, Economics/Class Relations, Lifestyle
“Beyond Enkription” by Bill Fairclough is the first stand-alone fact-based espionage novel of six autobiographical tomes in The Burlington Files series. As the first book in the series, it provides a gripping introduction to the world of British intelligence and espionage. It is an intense electrifying spy thriller that had me perched on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. The twists and turns in the interwoven plots kept me guessing beyond the epilogue. The characters were wholesome, well-developed and intriguing. The author’s attention to detail added extra layers of authenticity to the narrative.
In real life Bill Fairclough aka Edward Burlington (MI6 codename JJ) was one of Pemberton’s People in MI6; for more about that see a brief News Article dated 31 October 2022 published in TheBurlingtonFiles website. The series follows the real life of Bill Fairclough (and his family) who worked not only for British Intelligence, but also the CIA et al for several decades. The first tome is set in 1974 in London, Nassau and Port au Prince: see TheBurlingtonFiles website for a synopsis.
Fairclough is not a professional but his writing style is engaging and fast-paced, making it difficult to put the book down as he effortlessly glides from cerebral issues to action-packed scenes which are never that far apart. Beyond Enkription is the stuff memorable spy films are made of. It’s raw, realistic, punchy, pacy and provocative. While the book does not feature John le Carré’s “delicate diction, sophisticated syntax and placid plots” it remains a riveting and delightful read.
This thriller is like nothing we have ever come across before. Indeed, we wonder what The Burlington Files would have been like if David Cornwell (aka John le Carré) had collaborated with Bill Fairclough whom critics have likened to “a posh Harry Palmer”. They did consider collaborating but did not proceed as explained in the aforementioned News Article. Nonetheless, critics have lauded Beyond Enkription as being ”up there with My Silent War by Kim Philby and No Other Choice by George Blake”.
Overall, Beyond Enkription is a brilliantly refreshing book and a must read, especially for espionage cognoscenti. I cannot wait to see what is in store for us in the future. In the meantime, before reading Beyond Enkription do visit TheBurlingtonFiles website. It is like a living espionage museum and breathtaking in its own right.