Goldfinger

Goldfinger (1972) by Ian Fleming, published by Pan Books, is one of those wonderfully unapologetic Bond novels from the era when international espionage apparently required equal quantities of danger, dinner jackets, improbable villains and very expensive things being discussed in suspicious detail.

James Bond is once again dispatched to deal with a man who is clearly incapable of having an ordinary hobby. Auric Goldfinger is enormously wealthy, deeply unpleasant and unusually obsessed with gold, which is unfortunate for everyone around him and excellent news for the plot. What begins with Bond investigating some distinctly unsporting behaviour soon develops into something rather more ambitious, involving smuggling, criminal associates, elaborate schemes and the sort of plan that only makes sense if you have a private army, an unlimited budget and absolutely nobody around you willing to say, “Are you sure about this?”

Fleming’s Bond is rather different from the polished cinematic version most people know. He is harder, moodier and spends an impressive amount of time observing what people eat, drink, wear, drive and smoke. This is espionage conducted partly through intelligence gathering and partly through very strong opinions about breakfast.

Goldfinger himself is one of Fleming’s great villains: grotesque, calculating, absurdly rich and magnificently excessive. He does not merely want money. That would be far too ordinary. He wants gold, control and a scheme so grand that merely stealing something would seem almost disappointingly modest.

Then, of course, there is Pussy Galore, whose name alone confirms that this book comes from an era when subtlety had apparently been temporarily discontinued.

First published in 1959, Goldfinger became one of the best-known Bond stories and was later transformed into the famous 1964 film starring Sean Connery. Readers familiar only with the film may find it particularly interesting to see how Fleming originally constructed the story, what was changed for the cinema, and just how much stranger some of the original material can be.

This 1972 Pan Books edition also has that particular vintage paperback charm that modern publishing struggles to reproduce: compact dimensions, period cover design and the faint sense that it ought to have been purchased from a railway station bookstall by someone wearing a raincoat.

Condition is Fair, which in Crappy Old Books terminology means this copy has experienced considerably more real-world action than James Bond’s luggage. Expect visible signs of age, handling and previous ownership. It is not pretending to be a pristine collector’s specimen that has spent fifty years sealed in a climate-controlled vault guarded by Oddjob. It is an old paperback that has been read, survived, and is still perfectly capable of supplying several hours of Cold War-era villainy.

A splendid choice for Bond enthusiasts, Fleming collectors, lovers of vintage Pan paperbacks, or anyone who thinks modern thrillers could be improved by more gold bullion, golf-based tension and villains explaining unnecessarily elaborate plans.

Title: Goldfinger
Author: Ian Fleming
Publisher: Pan Books
Edition: 1972
ISBN: 0330102389
Condition: Fair

Sold by Crappy Old Books — because occasionally the world is not enough, but an elderly paperback in fair condition will have to do.

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