I’m not usually a fan of literary criticism since it often involves looking at classics or books that many people haven’t read (or don’t want to read). But I’m intrigued when I find a book of literary criticism on successful commercial fiction (in this case Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan character).
A while back I heard of a book of literary criticism of Ian Fleming’s James Bond, which I am still trying to track down. Today I was poking around the bargain bin over at Bookcloseouts.com and came across William Terdoslavich’s The Jack Ryan Agenda, which is a book of literary criticism on Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan novels. I missed that when it first came out so I picked it up for $5. I’ve read all of Tom Clancy Jack Ryan novels and seen most of the movies, so I’m curious as to what Terdoslavich has to say.
I’m also waiting to read Mutiny!: The True Events that Inspired the Hunt for Red October, which I bought my Dad for his birthday since he is a huge military history buff. Now I just have to wait for it to make it out of his to-be-read pile and into mine. While I was digging around I noticed that there is an older book put out by the US Naval Institute Press on the same topic called The Last Sentry: The True Story that Inspired the Hunt for Red October. I wonder if the authors of Mutiny! wrote a more commercial version of The Last Sentry or whether that’s a coincidence.
I’ll post my thoughts on The Last Sentry and Mutiny! when I get to them in the to-be-read pile. In the meantime, I’m interested in hearing from anyone who has read them or The Jack Ryan Agenda.
