The Mission Song

John Le Carre
Little, Brown and Company (2006)
ISBN 0316016748
Reviewed by Deb Shunamon for Reader Views (9/06)

I loved this book. I repeat, loved. It made me think, question, grin and squirm. After starting off with a very poignant quote, John Le Carre's “The Mission Song” proceeded to sweep me into a fascinating world of language interpreters and illusions, idealism and heartbreak. It also planted a big fist of anxiety in my stomach that stayed with me until the very last, disconcerting page of the book.

The unrest in the Eastern Congo region of Africa is the major subject of this novel, but unlike his previous book “The Constant Gardener,” Le Carre does not give the reader the choice of being a detached observer of the problems. This journey becomes personal. Our hero is Bruno Salvador, an intelligent, generally insightful, and very likeable character. The memories of this bi-racial, Congolese ex-pat provide the reader with a historical background for himself and this African region, while his present home is in London, a city dealing with the shock of recent terrorist bombings. Salvo's life as a mixed-race professional is told to us with enjoyable, playful writing, but with a clear message for those readers who bother to pay attention to it. Overall the pace is leisurely and Salvo's story is very interesting, but everything takes a sickening turn when British Intelligence offers him a contract to interpret during a meeting regarding the future of the Eastern Congo. From here on what's been lying just under the surface is brought into the open, and a different journey with Salvo begins. The story is simply great, and if I have any criticism of this book at all it is that there are a few lines in which Le Carre's writing is so British that the North American reader will have to pause to think about meaning - an interesting example of confusing communication from a book involving language interpretation.

“The Mission Song” is a great piece of fiction about the ongoing colonialism of Africa, among many other things. To my mind John Le Carre wrote this book not only to entertain, but to raise awareness. Perhaps this novel and Salvo's story will encourage readers to learn more about the beauty and problems of Africa and its peoples - whether it be the wars of the Congo, Rwanda, Uganda or Angola, or the ongoing AIDS devastation of Zambia, South Africa and other countries. There is also a lot to be discussed, which makes this book an ideal choice for book clubs. From defining "survival" and "ethics" and the extent to which our own modern lifestyles depend on the depravity of others; to whether the novel truly does mimic the real interests involved in the muddle of politics and wars devastating the Congo and other regions; to the age-old question of whether the Arab nations should be considered part of Africa or not. Whatever your opinions, and however you may wish to interpret the story, I strongly encourage you to read John Le Carre's “The Mission Song.” You will be all the wiser for it.

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