The American: Previously Published as A Very Private Gentleman Audiobook

" A slow paced (until the last few pages) study in alienation from modern society (based on a cynical, yet somewhat compelling view of human kind and our polity or lack thereof), the solitary pleasures of the Italian mountains and mountain towns and the man's capacity to re-connect with others --a priest and a student/prostitute. The writing is compelling. "

" VERY DISAPPOINTING. This would have made a good short story. If you take out the actual plot, which could have been done in 20-30 pages, half of the rest read like a not-very-interesting travel brochure written by a bored travel writer forced to tour Italy with in-laws and the other half was filled with bland generalizations on life that pretended to be deep insights but were actaully the immature babblings of drunken college sophomores during a late-night dormroom bull session. Very little action. This is one rare case where you should skip the book and go to the movie. If you want a well-written thriller, read Charles Cumming or Henry Porter. "

" This was okay. A bit boring but okay. "

" A delicious tale of intrigue with a healthy dose of gravitas. "

" A fun slow moving spy novel. I can see how it would make a great movie which usually means a less complex book. "

" Not nearly as rewarding and well written as The Industry of souls....But then that book would take quite a bit of beating "

" a great read, and it translated well to screen. "

" I'm only a little way into the book at this point, but it is intriguing. Intriguing, but slow to hook. If I didn't have a synopsis of the plot to work from -thereby knowing it picks up the pace -- I would probably not continue. "

" Meticulous is the best way to describe this book by Booth "

" I found the narrator incredibly tedious, and utterly smug. I couldn't bring myself to care about the "mystery" of him. It did make Italy sound lovely, and took me down my own little memory lane journey of my own time there, but it's not really worth reading. "

" I hadn't ever heard of this book until I saw The American, which is based (quite faithfully it turns out) on this book. The film took it's slow, deliberate pacing from the book. Definitely a slow burn. Not one for the Da Vinci crowd. "

" Well-written, but ultimately slight. Doesn't exactly get me amped up for the movie. "

" The movie The American starring George Clooney is based on this novel. The book and the film are underrated/misunderstood. "

" Much better than the movie "The American" "

" This book was a pleasant surprise. I had not read anything by Booth and picked it up when I read that the movie, The American was based on the book. "

" Better than the movie. Vivid development of characters and descriptions of rural Italy, its towns, villages and people. Part morality tale, part thriller. "

" Loving the Italian locations. "

" How can you not pick up a book with the lovely George Clooney on the cover? Let's hope that you can judge a book by its cover. "

" Different than the movie. Better in some ways, obviously more detailed. "

" This book is another example of how the movies can alter what the author orignally wrote. In this case I preferred the novel due to the depth of character portrayed on the written page. "

" I hadn't ever heard of this book until I saw The American, which is based (quite faithfully it turns out) on this book. The film took it's slow, deliberate pacing from the book. Definitely a slow burn. Not one for the Da Vinci crowd. "

" This book was a pleasant surprise. I had not read anything by Booth and picked it up when I read that the movie, The American was based on the book. "

" This book is slow. Sometimes beautifully slow, sometimes painfully slow. The writing style (first person; a lot of internal reflection by the narrator -- a gunsmith looking back at his career) facilitates an interesting exploration of self-honesty. And there is some action at the end. Briefly. "

" The narrator's diction is as precise as the weapons he fashions. "

" Very well written, the description of the small Italian villages made me want to get on a place to Italy. The entire novel is like walking a mine field, you'll spend it waiting for Mr. Butterfly's past to catch up to him. <br/> <br/> "

" An enjoyable read. Booth has eloquent prose with beautifully evocative descriptions of Italy. This is the book on which the movie is based, though there are plenty of differences in the plot. "

" Slow to start, then gets interesting. But I never fell in love with the book. The character isn't very likable and his philosophy of life is...disturbing. But I liked the author's style of prose. "