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the_unsocial_moth's review against another edition
5.0
Well-written, very readable and engaging narrative/biography about an American traitor I've never even heard of! The book included a lot of context of the time (socialism/communism, the Red Scare, WW2, Stalinism, other people and agents involved) and backed by well-cited evidence, as well as looks into the lives of the people (friends, family) who were effected by Noel Fields' betrayal. I'll admit I was captivated all the more because my family in Hungarian, and my grandfather was taken captive by the AVO as well. Reading the description of what Noel, Herta, Hermann, and Erica went through in Soviet prisons connected with my family past. I definitely will be reading more from this author.
gilnean's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
0.75
True Believer is the story of a fascinating historical figure, and there are pieces of great historical value and truth to be found—if you can sift through the drivel that is Marton's flagrant bias, historical distortions, sheer ignorance, and sometimes outright lies.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Genocide, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Murder, and Deportation
Minor: Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Fatphobia, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Excrement, Medical content, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
fuzzkins's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.5
singlikeamother's review against another edition
2.0
Kati Marton's account of the strange life of Noel Field is a compelling read, but it doesn't quite succeed either as a biography or as a history of Communist espionage in the 20th century. Marton's bias against her subject is abundantly clear (and certainly legitimate, considering that Field not only betrayed his country, but also was indirectly responsible for the imprisonment of her own parents in the year before the Hungarian Revolution), and she leaves wide cognitive ellipses between the events in Field's life and his presumed motivations, and also fails to explain the details of his subversive work against his government. For instance, in the otherwise quite interesting section on Field's work in Spain for the USC, Marton makes the claim that Field duped his employers by giving preferential treatment to Communist members of the International Brigades, but she gives no details on how he did this or what he accomplished, and names virtually none of the recipients of this preference. Herta Field, about whom I would have liked to know more, also emerges as a complete cipher. Compounding these narrative gaps, Marton's citations are also spotty and inconsistent; many of her quotations sent me shuffling to the footnotes, only to find no source given, which has the unfortunate effect of calling her scholarship into question. I don't know if this is the fault of the author or her editor, but this book ended up a disappointment.
socraticgadfly's review against another edition
4.0
Some reviewers complain this book isn't scintillating enough.
But, that's the whole point, Noel Fields was totally a paint-by-numbers type of person. The fact that someone so bland in such ways could become, indeed, such a True Believer, to become complicit in the death of at least one Stalin-deviating Communist dissident is exactly the point. That said, Ms. Merton never quite shows how there was one decisive point for him in accepting not just Communism in general but Stalinism in particular. On the other hand, maybe there was never one such point, and that itself is part of the story, like Churchill's bon mot about the USSR in general.
But, that's the whole point, Noel Fields was totally a paint-by-numbers type of person. The fact that someone so bland in such ways could become, indeed, such a True Believer, to become complicit in the death of at least one Stalin-deviating Communist dissident is exactly the point. That said, Ms. Merton never quite shows how there was one decisive point for him in accepting not just Communism in general but Stalinism in particular. On the other hand, maybe there was never one such point, and that itself is part of the story, like Churchill's bon mot about the USSR in general.
vsbedford's review against another edition
4.0
An engrossing and well-researched exploration of the political and social landscape of the 20th century and the mind and soul of a man who put his belief in Communism above his loyalty or fealty to almost everything else in his life. Ms. Marton does a particularly outstanding job attempting to unravel and understand the emotional and intellectual hoops Noel Field put himself through to justify his actions as a Soviet spy, and his allegiance to Stalin, as well and the casual racism and general stagnation of the American intelligence community that allowed him to thrive. A small point of criticism, for me, is the over reliance on ominous phrasing (there's a lot of "this relationship would exact a high price" and "the real nightmare was still a decade away") that I found unnecessary; there's enough drama and gray clouds in Noel Field's world without these flourishes.
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received an ecopy from the publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
justabean_reads's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
About a Swiss-born American Quaker who becomes an ardent Stalinist, resulting in some spying and a good deal of grief. He worked in the American foreign service, with the League of Nations, and with various aid agencies during the Spanish Civil War and World War II, and it's not clear that his spying actually accomplished anything. It certainly didn't stop the post-War Soviets from black bagging him and as much of his family as they could reach. (Incidentally, you know that rule where if you see someone passed out in a confined space, you don't go in to get them lest you be overcome by the same poison gas? I feel the same ought to apply too if your loved one mysteriously vanishes east of the Iron Curtain.)
Marton's own parents were Hungarian journalists at a time when that was not a career with a long life expectancy, and her own story crosses into the book a few times, including her parents being the only people ever to interview the protagonist. It does make sense of why she has Strong Opinions about the Soviet Union in general, and Stalin in particular. Marton touches briefly on other Soviet spies of the era, such as Alger Hiss, and some of the context of the time, but for the most part the book is about self-delusion, and how a man cannot face up to making one spectacularly bad choice after another. It all comes out very sad.
Marton's own parents were Hungarian journalists at a time when that was not a career with a long life expectancy, and her own story crosses into the book a few times, including her parents being the only people ever to interview the protagonist. It does make sense of why she has Strong Opinions about the Soviet Union in general, and Stalin in particular. Marton touches briefly on other Soviet spies of the era, such as Alger Hiss, and some of the context of the time, but for the most part the book is about self-delusion, and how a man cannot face up to making one spectacularly bad choice after another. It all comes out very sad.
aliciabooks's review against another edition
3.0
WHEN YOU GET OUT OF A SOVIET GULAG AND WEEP UPON HEARING THAT STALIN'S DEAD . . . DING, DING, DING, I WOULD SAY WE HAVE OURSELVES A TRUE BELIEVER
allyssascott's review against another edition
3.0
Review To Come. I received an advanced copy of this book from Simon & Schuster Canada in exchange for an honest review. I have very mixed feelings about this book. I was very excited to read True Believer. The story and life of Noel Field is an interesting tale but I had some issues on how this story was presented. After reading the blurb I expected more of a biography feel to the book, something that flowed together nicely. What I got instead resembled closely to one of my University history text books.
I struggled through the beginning of this book. Like I said, it felt a lot like a history text book and a lot of it was very dry material for me. There were many times throughout the first half that I considered putting the book down. I just found the beginning, for lack of a better word, boring. I’m sure that someone who is more interested in this time period will definitely disagree with me! I just felt that there was a lot of information that wasn’t necessary to tell the story of Noel Field. I had a difficult time getting engaged in the story, and I think that’s mostly due to the fact that I just couldn’t come to care about Noel Field. There were some parts of the story that I found very interesting, especially in the last half of the book. The last half picked up the pace a little bit and I found myself enjoying it a lot more, I’m happy I didn’t give up in the beginning.
I have a feeling that a lot of history buffs are absolutely going to love this one, and I will definitely recommend it to people who enjoy that time in history, but it just isn’t the time in history that I get overly excited about!
Thank you Simon & Schuster Canada for providing me with a copy of True Believer.
I struggled through the beginning of this book. Like I said, it felt a lot like a history text book and a lot of it was very dry material for me. There were many times throughout the first half that I considered putting the book down. I just found the beginning, for lack of a better word, boring. I’m sure that someone who is more interested in this time period will definitely disagree with me! I just felt that there was a lot of information that wasn’t necessary to tell the story of Noel Field. I had a difficult time getting engaged in the story, and I think that’s mostly due to the fact that I just couldn’t come to care about Noel Field. There were some parts of the story that I found very interesting, especially in the last half of the book. The last half picked up the pace a little bit and I found myself enjoying it a lot more, I’m happy I didn’t give up in the beginning.
I have a feeling that a lot of history buffs are absolutely going to love this one, and I will definitely recommend it to people who enjoy that time in history, but it just isn’t the time in history that I get overly excited about!
Thank you Simon & Schuster Canada for providing me with a copy of True Believer.