The Berlin Memorandum (UK title, published by Collins; published as The Quiller Memorandum in the US by Simon & Schuster),[1] is a 1965 spy novel written by Elleston Trevor (under the pseudonym Adam Hall). It is the debut novel of the character Quiller, who was ultimately featured in a series of 19 thrillers, until Trevor's death in 1995, having been Trevor's most popular character.[2]
In Britain, The Bookseller reported that the novel was one of Collins' best selling works in spring 1965.[3] Portions of it were serialized in the Daily Mail.[3] By June 1965, The Publishers Association had The Berlin Memorandum in its top 5 best sellers list for fiction in Britain.[4]
The work won the 1966 Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel.[5] It also won the 1966 Grand Prix de Littérature Policière for best international crime novel.[6]
Anthony Boucher, writing for The New York Times Book Review, subsequently said that The Quiller Memorandum had attracted a "large body of readers" and that it was "one of the small handful of truly distinguished spy novels of the 1960s."[7] It has been considered part of a wave of spy novels influenced by John le Carré's groundbreaking 1963 work The Spy Who Came in from the Cold.[8] In fact, Trevor later said he had been inspired by reading a review of (but not, fearing he might take too close an influence, the actual text of) The Spy Who Came in from the Cold.[9]
It was adapted as the 1966 film The Quiller Memorandum starring George Segal based on a screenplay written by Harold Pinter.[2] The film took many departures from the novel, including making Quiller an American,[10] and Trevor was unhappy with Pinter's work on it.[9]
Collins then republished the novel as The Quiller Memorandum in the UK in 1967,[1] to capitalise on the film.
The Quiller Memorandum was republished in 2004 by Forge Books, with an introduction by Otto Penzler.[11]
- ^ a b Reilly, John M., ed. (1980). Twentieth Century Crime & Mystery Writers. London: Macmillan. p. 1394. ISBN 9781349813667.
- ^ a b Gussow, Mel (25 July 1995). "Elleston Trevor, 75, Novelist of Many Names and Books". The New York Times. p. A13.
- ^ a b "uncertain". The Bookseller. London. January 1966. p. 75 at this archive.
- ^ "Best Seller in Britain". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. 19 June 1965. p. 19 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "(Search by author, date or title)". The Edgars Database. Mystery Writers of America. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
- ^ (in French) Guide des Prix littéraires, online ed. Le Rayon du Polar. p. 33.
- ^ Boucher, Anthony (22 January 1967). "Criminals at Large". The New York Times Book Review. p. 36.
- ^ Manning, Toby (2018). John le Carré and the Cold War. London: Bloomsbury Academic. p. 52.
- ^ a b Bradley, Matthew R. "A Final Interview with Elleston Trevor". The Unofficial Quiller Web Site. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
- ^ Steffen, James. "The Quiller Memorandum". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
- ^ "Books by Adam Hall and Complete Book Reviews". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 10 January 2019.