Desert Island Bond?

TheManfromJutopolis

Browsing this board I've seen a few threads where people ask which Bond book they should read first and for the most part the advice, quite rightly, seems to be start at the beginning and read them in order. But what would you recommend to someone who, hypothetically, was only ever going to read one Bond book, with no prospect of reading any of the others? For me, it would be OHMSS. Great locations, great action, and in the chapters atop Piz Gloria we really get inside the mind of Bond, seeing how he works, how he improvises, how he thinks. So is OHMSS the best Bond 'primer', or would you recommend a different novel?

chrisisall

TheManfromJutopolis wrote:

But what would you recommend to someone who, hypothetically, was only ever going to read one Bond book, with no prospect of reading any of the others?

Wow.... that IS a question.
Hmmmm....

OHMSS is such a great novel, but to read one with a downer ending again and again....

And with not knowing that book I couldn't recommend YOLT...

I guess I'd just go with Moonraker.

TheManfromJutopolis

Moonraker's such a great novel chrisisall, second only to OHMSS in my list of Fleming favourites, but is it representative of the Bond canon as a whole? I'm thinking in particular of the fact that the action is confined to that small corner of England between London and Dover, and lacks the exotic locations we've come to expect from the novels (and even more so the films). The answer of course is to read them all, but it's fun to try and think what single novel most epitomises the Bond books.

Thunderpussy

I'd be packing, O.H.M.S.S

Charmed & Dangerous

Thunderball for me, as long as the desert island was Paradise Island .[*][/*]

chrisisall

Charmed & Dangerous wrote:

Thunderball for me

I love that one. It's fairly long too...

Le Samourai

For me, it would be a toss-up between CR and LALD. LALD would probably win. I love the tropical locations and the sheer dark brutality of it.

Silhouette Man

Moonraker for me as it's my personal favourite of all of Ian Fleming's oeuvre. Very satisfying.

Le Samourai

Silhouette Man wrote:

Moonraker for me as it's my personal favourite of all of Ian Fleming's oeuvre. Very satisfying.

I can't argue with your choice. My favorite Flemings are the first three: CR, LALD, and MR. I read these over and over again. This despite the fact I think FRWL is probably the best written Bond novel.

Silhouette Man

Le Samourai wrote:

Silhouette Man wrote:

Moonraker for me as it's my personal favourite of all of Ian Fleming's oeuvre. Very satisfying.

I can't argue with your choice. My favorite Flemings are the first three: CR, LALD, and MR. I read these over and over again. This despite the fact I think FRWL is probably the best written Bond novel.

You're right as always, Le S. Stick with AJB...