John le Carré, the pseudonym of David John Moore Cornwell, is an English author of espionage novels. The Secret Pilgrim is a 1990 episodic novel. Ned is one of the British and American intelligence officers blamed for the betrayal of his country by the publisher Barley Scott Blair. Ned has been removed from the daily operation of what is called the Service and is an instructor at Sarratt, where the men and women in British intelligence receive their training. He has invited George Smiley, his old mentor, to address the graduating class. As Smiley reminisces about his long career and the moral implications of the Cold War, his comments remind Ned of various people and events in his life. The best of the resulting stories stand as self-contained tales in which le Carré reflects upon the themes of his oeuvre, especially love, friendship, betrayal, and the impact of the Cold War. The most personal of Ned’s stories involves his friendship with Ben Arno Cavendish, whom he meets during training in the early 1960s. Ben bungles his first major assignment: After foolishly writing on postcards the details of a painstakingly developed spy network in East Germany, he compounds his error by taking the cards with him into East Berlin and losing them, thereby exposing the entire network. Ben runs away before his folly is discovered, and Smiley tricks Ned into leading him to the culprit’s hideaway… You can listen online to free English audiobook “The Secret Pilgrim” by John le Carré on our website.
