The World at Night: A Novel Reviews

• Another gem from Furst

  
  By A27WFYW9ZJ5DN1 on 2004-12-02
  Once again, Alan Furst has brilliantly taken us back into the 1930s and 1940s, this time to Paris in the immediate aftermath of the Nazi Germany invasion. The protagonist, a film producer who initially thinks life can continue as normal, takes us step by step through the transition from sadness to resentment to anger to resistance against a brutal occupying force.
  
  Furst's real achievement in this novel is taking the mundane and the normal and weaving them into the difficult and violent world of war and occupation. Everyday experiences like eating, drinking, earning a living, loving and talking are the primary daily behaviors around which the characters interact, but they are all intruded upon by the occupation. This is what makes the book so "real."
  
  Furst combines history, fiction, and the mysteries of espionage as well as anyone since Eric Ambler. He is always worth reading.
  
  
  

• Part One Of Two

  
  By A37F1G84K35FCZ on 2002-02-07
  "The World At Night", is actually the first of a pair of books that tell the story of Jean Casson, a former movie producer who is faced with finding a way to survive the onset and extended occupation of Paris in World War II. France was not only divided into parts by the Germans, it was further sub-divided by a variety of groups that had their own agenda. Jean tries to maintain his life, and protects those he cares about, all the while coping with what it means to be a patriot.

  Alan Furst writes about a narrow by eventful time from 1933 to 1945. His books are meticulously accurate to the point they would pass inspection by many readers of history. The author takes an unusual step at the end of his books by sharing with readers his sources for the novels he creates. This is not done in an academic bibliography or a blizzard of footnotes, rather he writes conversationally about what he reads, and what he suggests as reading for those who are interested.

  In this first book Jean Casson will take part as a photographer during the short-lived French defense. He eventually finds himself taking on a task he believes will help France through his aiding the British. This is not a character that has a desire to be heroic; he seems to just want to find his place. Questions of what is honorable, and what constitutes loyalty constantly shadow him. In many ways he is the personification of the nation he lives in. He is conflicted to the point of pondering whether a barber who continues to cut hair during the war, including that of the German occupiers is a collaborator. At this level the question may appear simpler than the so-called larger issues, but the philosophical issue is the same.

  Jean is given the opportunity to escape to England and continue to work in some manner for France. As he makes his way to The English Channel he continues to torture himself with issues both political and personal. His final act and the justification for it will surprise many, and seem appropriate to others. Whatever you may feel at the close of the book, you will feel your time has been well spent.
  
  

• "Victor, Please Don't Go to the Underground Meeting Tonight"

  
  By ARG7WTYP8L66M on 2002-10-18
  Furst's writing is very film aware: As I read THE WORLD AT NIGHT, I felt that I was somewhere in between a prequel to CASABLANCA and one of Marcel Carné's 1930s celluloid evocations of despair, such as QUAI DES BRUMES. I was also conscious that Furst did a creditable job bringing to life a time and place we all knew mostly from the movies. Of course, a film adaptation of this novel would probably garner an R-rating, what with its hero's richly textured sex life.

  Jean Casson plays a small-time movie producer who has to learn how to shift for himself under the Nazi occupation of France. On the way, he not only falls in love with the hot starlet Citrine, but simultaneously acts as an agent for the Boche and the Resistance.

  Furst's Gestapo officers come across as unexpectedly tolerant and even bemused -- except when they are crossed. Ach, these French! Why can't they understand that we are only trying to help them? Lieutenant Colonel Guske of the SS in particular is sketched in with admirable restraint.

  My only problem with an otherwise wildly entertaining read is that Casson's escape from Gestapo headquarters at the end is just a bit too pat. With his strength at setting the mood and his aptitude for interesting and very French characterizations, Furst could have sacrificed some of the derring-do at the end without sacrificing the sense of the story.

  I first heard of the author on a National Public Radio broadcast while driving to the library. Within hours, I was congratulating myself for having found another interesting new writer.
  
  

• A compelling and satisfying read

  
  By A7XKLG196L5AH on 2000-12-18
  "The World At Night" was the first novel I've read by Alan Furst, and after reading it, I intend to read the rest of them. Most espionage thrillers are situated in some exotic or foreign locale, but offer little more than a brief explanation of the dot on the map where the characters are. Alan Furst gives you the details, the atmosphere, to make the place come alive. He gives you the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells. I enjoyed the story of Jean Casson, a resident of Paris whose life of casual affairs and pleasures is interrupted by the war, and who experiences the dilemmas that must have been common. In addition to being a master at creating atmosphere, Furst also knows how to keep the reader in suspense. His chapters describing Casson's flight across the border into Vichy, and his escape from the Gestapo, were especially gripping. Casson's choice of action at the novel's conclusion surprised and moved me. Overall, this was a most satisfying read. Mr. Furst, you have a new devoted reader.
  
  

• Definitely Not One of his Best.

  
  By AZV6OGQRNDLOT on 2001-06-23
  Certainly not one of his best. For the life of me I couldn't quite understand what drove Jean Casson to do what he did, other than vague patriotism. Adept at re-creating Pre-WWII and WWII Europe in his other novels, Furst falls flat in this one. Casson seems to wander through the book from one liason to another. The German occupation is in some instances, a minor backdrop, to Casson's search for love and/or sex. The ending was very disappointing to me. Being written by Furst, it is readable, which is why I've given it three stars. If you are new to Furst, you would be better off to start with another of his novels (Red Star, Polish Officer, Night Soldiers) to really get a true taste of his capabilities. If you are already a fan, like myself, you'll probably want to get it to round out your collection.
  
  
• A Solid Novel, but not Furst's Greatest
  By A260X99UW6HA9Z on 2006-04-12
  For the first time in his well crafted series of espionage novels set amid the interwar years and opening acts of WW2 taking place in Eastern Europe, Furst departs from his usual stomping grounds in "The World at Night". Firstly, the story takes place in France, and its main character, Jean Casson, is French. Secondly, the timeline is from the invasion of France into World War 2- often occurring only in the final chapters of Furst's other novels.
  
  His accomplishment is varied in its quality; at first I was not so interested in reading this book because the originality of his others seemed to be replaced by a run-of-the-mill WW2 spy novel. However, Jean Casson holds his own as an interesting and conflicted protagonist. As he converts his skills in media production to resisting Nazi rule, Casson is torn between the life of affluence he knew, and the desire to fight for the memory of France that seems to be fading all around him. Additionally, Casson's love interest adds another layer of complexity to the story.
  
  "The World at Night" has an ending that left me waiting for more, and a little unsatisfied, which is my biggest critique of the story. I think Furst himself must have realized this, and he returns to Jean Casson's plight in the only direct sequel he has written to date (April, 2006), and the continues the tale in "Red Gold".
  
  Although this novel can easily be read as a stand-alone book, some readers will enjoy beginning their foray into Furst's world with "Night Soldiers", his original and possibly best spy novel. This book introduces several characters who make appearances throughout Furst's other novels set in the same period of time and general geographical local. Because of this fact, I highly recommend reading "Night Soldiers" first, although those that follow can typically be read in any particular order (the exception being the stories involving Jean Casson - World at Night and Red Gold).
  
  What makes Furst's loosely structured series so compelling is that 1; they are very well researched and historical very accurate, especially with regard to spy craft - as I understand it through academic experience only. 2; the characters are extremely flawed, very believable and interesting to empathize with - all of the characters and their adventures provoke much thought. 3; the novels do not attempt to achieve a false sense of conclusion at their end - they always allow the reader to decide for him/herself what happens, and they rarely resolve the feeling of tension that pervades Furst's works. 4; the secondary characters are always very well developed and much more interesting than their sometimes small roles would have the reader believe- so one is always off balance (who will live, who will die - who can be trusted, who cannot?). 5; Furst does an excellent job of setting the atmosphere of terror that resulted from the conflict between fascism and the resistance in France during the Second World War.
  
  You cannot go wrong with this novel. While not Furst's best spy novel, for anyone interested in reading and enjoying spy stories, or stories of world war two, this book is a must read.
  
  
  
• Superb evocation of Paris at the eve of World War II.
  By on 1996-06-14
  I've read all of Alan Furst's books at least three times, except for "World at Night" (which has been out only long enough for one pass)."World at Night" is the fourth of Furst's novels set in Europe before and during World War II. Furst lived in Europe the last few years, reading obscure tracts, diaries, and memoirs of Europeans who survived the war -- spies, peddlers, minor diplomats, -- whomever.The remarkable tone captured in these novels is the result. "Night Soldiers" accompanied me to Spain, and should be read by anyone who wants an additional sense of the Spanish Civil War beyond "For Whom the Bell Tolls" and "Homage to Catalonia." "World at Night" has the weakest ending of the four World War II books, in my opinion, but it is still superb. It is reminiscent of ReMarque's novels set in pre-war Paris. I liked Furst's early books, too -- "Your Day in the Barrel" and its sequel (which for some reason Amazon does not list). A warning, however -- these early books are REALLY different from the latter ones, so appreciation of the World War II novels is no guarantee that you'll like these others. If you liked Donald Westlake's early comic/suspense novels like "Fugitive Pigeon," then you'll like the early Fursts.
  
  
• Good read, but not Furst's best
  By AL2VHMX01PDW5 on 2000-04-05
  Furst brings 1930s Europe alive and I will continue to read all his books, but still found it vaguely unsatisfying compared to Dark Star & Night Soldiers or even Polish Officer.
  
  
• Comic book attempt at Greene territory
  By on 1999-07-13
  Alan Furst is no Graham Greene, and nowhere does this become more apparent than at the end of this silly, often trite book. Up until the ending, Furst tries so hard (too hard?) to achieve all that came as second nature in Greene's "entertainments." In each chapter here we get at least five mentions of "the shape of the world now" or "how big the world now is," etc. The characters are thin and interchangeable, and the frustrating translation of every simple French statement shows who this book is really geared towards. High schoolers.
  
  
• Another atmospheric work from Furst
  By A3PGGI7A6XCNF1 on 2002-01-25
  Alan Furst has staked out his own particular place in the fictional literature of Europe around the time of World War II. His characters, sometime Central Europeans, sometime Frenchmen, are those caught up in the maelstrom and turbulence of the war. We see ordinary people exposed to moral ambiguities, and decisions must be made which are life-changing. There is heroism and cowardice, love and fear, and all the other panoply of emotions involved when the usual way of life is overtaken by war and violence. The characters are exceptionally finely drawn, and the writing is such that you want to finish the book at one sitting to find out how it ends. Now that this one is done, I'll be starting its sequel, for I really care about the characters.
  
  
• Who said he has to be Graham Greene?
  By ALLJRF8ZLK97N on 2000-07-05
  This is the only Alan Furst novel I have read. I've just started Red Gold. I like the way this novel created a mood of a city just beginning to realize the hardships of occupation. Jean Casson was a sympathetic character even though some might think he was a bit feckless in his lifestyle. I learned a fair amount about the relation between the French authority and the occupying German forces. I had a preconception that this book would be centered around the operations of the French resistance. I came to realize that this book was about one man and his ability to cope with a world that had suddenly come undone.
  
  
• Furst's Weakest
  By A1RAUVCWYHTQI4 on 2003-10-21
  Furst's fourth WWII espionage novel is heavy on atmosphere but virtually plotless, and is disappointingly left to be finished in his next book, Red Gold. All his books feature loner male protagonists, and here the subject is Jean Casson, a midrange French film producer. In his early 40s, Casson is a somewhat hedonistic bon vivant, and as life comes to a momentary standstill during the initial weeks of occupation, he struggles to keep himself fed and clothed. One gets the distinct sense that Casson is supposed to be somewhat emblematic of a certain type or even France, rather than a distinctive character unto himself. A somewhat empty womanizing type, without the courage of any convictions, but with expensive tastes, Casson is recruited to help the resistance. It's a third of the way into the book, by the time this happens though, and-unlike in other of Furst's books-the intelligence aspect never picks up any momentum.

  As amateur intelligence operation, Casson is mediocre at best, and it's never really clear why he agrees to help. The perhaps reflects a certain aspect of France at the time, the desire to retain honor, but without having to do too much hard work, or put oneself into too dangerous a situation. At the same time his espionage work starts, he rekindles an old relationship that is perhaps his one true love. This never transcends the generic potboiler romance level, and fails to add any depth to what little story there is. As in all of Furst's writing, the book is rich in detail when in comes to occupied Europe, one really gets the vibe of the cafés, restaurants, and street life in Paris. However, the espionage angle develops rather confusingly and almost randomly, resulting in a rather convoluted anticlimactic finale, which includes a ridiculous escape scene. This weakness is only further exacerbated by the book's abrupt end-why this brief story and Red Gold were split into two books is both annoying a bit of a mystery. The result is that this book is probably the weakest of Furst's espionage oeuvre.
  
  

• Disappointing plotting from an over-rated author
  By on 2003-12-02
  The mystifying critical acclaim attending Alan Furst makes more of his efforts than he deserves even at his best, and this is his absolute nadir. His writing is hailed as "cinematic", apparently because the chapters are chopped into short, incoherent set pieces that are clearly meant to be visually evocative, but succeed only in being disjointed and telegraphic. There is no complexity or depth to his characterizations, and he has created a hero so unsympathetic that you wouldn't mind seeing the Nazis catch him. As for his vaunted ablility to evoke war-time Europe, the flat and lifeless descriptions here are particularly disappointing. An intelligent teen-ager with a thesaurus, a map of Paris, and the Michelin green guide could do just as well. Readers interested in evocative pre-war suspense would be better served sticking to novels of the period. Compare Mr. Furst's writing with Eric Ambler's (eg, "Journey into Fear" or "Cause for Alarm"), and decide for yourself.
  
  
• horrible
  By A3P8WHL3LBXFEF on 2004-08-16
  i could only read half this book before tossing it --just bad!!!!
  no suspense no characters you can care about-no plot-
  i think i could write a better book.
  and filled with foul words and sex scenes(not too graphic but constant)save your money
  
  
• The accidental spy
  By A8IPQ1Q1O7YX5 on 2006-10-09
  This is only my second Alan Furst book (after BLOOD OF VICTORY), and it brings me closer to understanding why my friends rave about him. The setting is Paris in the first year of the occupation. Furst clearly knows the city, its life, and its people, but what he does best goes well beyond the local color of the occasional French phrase and out-of-the-way locations. By allowing himself generous time to establish the social milieu before the spy story really kicks in, he excellently captures how it must have FELT to be a French professional living through the outbreak of war, the first abortive fighting, and the changing attitudes of the Parisians to the occupiers in their midst. I tend to believe this more than any of the several books about the resistance I have read lately.
  
  The hero is Jean-Claude Casson, a fortyish movie producer, ex-husband, and prodigal lover. His position and relative affluence give him a greater ease of movement than most of his compatriots, and he finds himself respected even by his German contacts. So when people begin to approach him for special favors, he sort of slides into agreement. Before he (or the reader) fully knows it, he has become a part-time agent, recruited by both sides, learning to live by a new code of honor. He is not asked to do much, and what he does do seems relatively simple. There are a few close shaves, but little apparent danger or narrative suspense; in a way, it all seems almost easy. But I think this is probably also true to life, in that such adventures might well start by seeming insignificant until luck runs out; the almost-casual quality of the book is one of its strongest aspects.
  
  Somebody remarked on this site that Furst has a cinematic eye; he writes film noir scenes and romances, the same genre as Casson's movies. The noir quality is beautifully reinforced by the physical presentation of this book, whose cover features period photographs by André Kertész and Brassai and has carefully designed typography. The romance, unfortunately, is less successful; there is little sense that Jean-Claude's return to a former love, the once-great actress Citrine, is significantly different from his other amours -- at least until it comes to matter. By then, one can take it as a given, but not truly feel it. So the subtly ambiguous ending of the book, which largely depends on the strength of this commitment, is not quite as satisfying as it might have been. But it is a small failing in an otherwise fine novel.
  
  
• The Debasement of Wartime France
  By A3KNGA5WIECM5V on 2006-10-16
  One character in "The World at Night" sums it up the best: "One had a few friends, but mostly people were meant to be used, one way or another, and if you weren't born knowing that you had better learn it somewhere along the way." This sort of cynicism typifies the Paris of this novel, where almost everyone is trying to go along to get along, cherishing black market goods and making deals, as necessary, with the Germans to survive. After French soldiers run (and officers drive!) in flight from Wehrmacht troops, idealists, or even patriots, are in short supply. From LeHavre to the Spanish border, corruption permeates half-occupied, half-Vichy, wartime France.
  
  This novel is thus somewhat different from Furst's prior works. For one thing, the hero is neither soldier nor spy, but a film producer reluctantly drawn into the action for ambiguous reasons. Although initially more interested in skirt-chasing, Jean Casson discovers within himself a deep sense of patriotism. When asked to take part in a mission run by the British secret service, he finds himself at odds with the Gestapo and forced to conceal parts of his life from compromised friends.
  
  I agree with other reviewers who noted the flaws in this book. The flight from Gestapo headquarters, among other things, does not ring entirely true. However, Alan Furst's unmatched description of wartime Paris and the heft and complexity he gives to even minor characters more than compensate for any shortcomings.
  
  
• Furst's first as a series
  By on 2002-06-28
  This book is the first in a series of books by Alan Furst about men caught in the turmoil of the early days of Wrold War II in Europe. This one is the first to consider Jean Casson, a French film director, who scrambles to stay alive and fight the Germans in the game of espionage. Furst uses his story to draw a picture of how it was then, and this is as interesting as one can be in the events of that time in that place. Two other of his books, The Polish Officer and Kingdom of Shadows, take this approach further East, and are much the better for it. Worth reading as a beginning to his other books
  
  
• Nice story gimmick, poor story plot.
  By A13I302CDO6JSK on 2002-07-09
  A good deal of this relatively short book held my interest for the scenery and mood presented by the author. When looking at a couple of his other books, I see that presenting a realistic atmosphere of World War II Europe is this writer's gimmick. He is quite good at it, and there are certainly worse schemes in vogue by various popular writers.

  I rate this book low, but not because it is so slow moving. I have enjoyed other books with a deliberate pace. My problem with the book is that the plot is not presented until about half way through the book. Even then, the climax registered as barely a ripple in the water. When I finished the book, I wondered where was the rest, and what was the point of telling the story. I understand from other reviewers that the writer has a sequel to possibly complete the story. The book would have been better if the two volumes had been combined. I doubt that I will invest in the second book.
  
  

• The Nightmare Years
  By AQ4SL7M6CLY6L on 2002-08-25
  I have read several of Furst's novels and they are all very good, particularly in evoking the atmosphere of sheer terror that pervaded Europe between 1933 and 1945 - though he might extend the streak beyond 1945 to cover the early, horrific years of the cold war. I have only one suggestion: that for his future novels he should get a good French copy-editor. He makes a great many mistakes in French. These are novels, so it's a venal sin, but it detracts from his claims to authenticity to write, for instance, 'monsieurs et madames'. I'll send him a list of mistakes in this book, if he wants.
  
  
• Paris Under Occupation
  By A3QS5UYAGHF4IU on 2006-04-26
  I liked this book, not for the spy story, nor for the love story, but for the Paris story. Fascinating account of what life was like in the fabled city under Nazi occupation. At first, the Parisians were blase, then restless, then depressed as the occupation went on. The main character, Casson, after screwing around for half the book, finally decides to get off his [...] and try to do something for his country. This is my second Furst novel and I'm not yet sure how much I like him. However, I love his ability to replicate the atmosphere of Europe during the turbulent war years. The wartime Paris of this novel is one that will resonate a long time in the reader.
  
  
• I MOSTLY LIKED IT A LOT UNTIL THE END
  By A1Y6G6LD4QRUFK on 2006-08-28
  Furst is always interesting in my opinion, and having just come back from a trip to Paris, I was eager to read a Furst novel that takes place there. The recreation of Paris during the German occupation was very well done, I thought, and I liked the fact that Casson was a film producer because I think that makes for interesting reading. What didn't work for me was his relationship with Citrine - I didn't think Furst prepared us properly for how important the relationship became to Casson. And as far as the ending goes, talk about mailing it in. What happened - did the editors at Random House contact Alan on vacation in Provence and tell him his manuscript was late and to just send them all he had, even if it wasn't complete? That's certainly how I was left feeling. Oh, well. It doesn't diminish my enthusiasm for Alan Furst - just leaves me shaking my head a little.
  
  
• ANOTHER GEM FROM THE GREATEST OF OUR TIME
  By on 1998-06-17
  IF YOU HAVE NOT READ ALAN FURST, YOU HAVE MISSED OUT ON PERHAPS THE FINEST AUTHOR OF THE MODERN ERA. MR FURST TRANSPORTS THE READER BACK TO MID-CENTURY EUROPE AND MAKES CLEAR THE COMPLICATED EVENTS AND PEOPLE OF THAT TIME. ALL THIS AND CHARACTORS WHOM YOU WILL NOT EVER FORGET.
  
  
• Great writing supports a thin story
  By A3RJTES0UK9MXS on 2003-04-28
  I recently discovered Alan Furst and consider him one of the best period novelists writing today. I read "Kingdom of Shadows" first, which was excellent, and came to this novel with great expectations. While Furst again delivers rich characterization and the ominous atmosphere of German-occupied Paris, I felt the story did not rise to the level of the word craft.

  The main character is complex but is so detached and unopinionated that I found myself not caring about him or the choices that he made. His ennui soon became mine as I soldiered on reading this novel, waiting for something to happen. A hokey escape sequence followed by a maudlin ending left me disappointed.

  Looking back, I realize that I came to this book for a spy story and on that basis this novel fails; however, had I come to it to experience what France must have been like under Nazi occupation, then I would rate this book is a smashing success.
  
  

• Indeed, not his best.
  By ASZ7GSHL0KG7X on 2004-04-27
  But a worthy effort. I like Mr. Furst's description of
  occupied France. >Spoiler< I don't believe Casson's escape from
  the Gestapo, and I'm disappointed by his "escape" from the
  people trying to get him out of France at the end of the
  book. A lot of people put their fictional lives on the line
  to get him to England, and he can't stand leaving his
  girlfriend. Typical Frenchman, LoL. Sorry, just had to say it.
  Again, though, the descriptive writing is first-rate, I think.
  
  
• A Terrific Read in Historical/Espionage Fiction
  By A30R23VXTBBTLN on 2005-11-04
  This was my first foray into the historical/espionage novels of Alan Furst, and I was very impressed with this little book. The writing is superb: Furst really captured for me the feeling of Paris at the start of the Second World War. I truly savored the way he created suspenseful atmospherics with an economy of words. I also greatly appreciated Furst's attention to historical detail, and the authenticity he lends his depiction of spy tradecraft. There are elements that test one's suspension of disbelief--the ability of the main character, Casson, to draw women to his bed rivals James Bond, and his escapes from disaster are almost unbelievable--but, to me, this mattered little. In fact, these just added to the fun. Furst's novel was a joy to read, and I can't wait to read more of his work.
  
  
• Chilling portrait of occupied France
  By A680RUE1FDO8B on 2005-12-04
  Alan Furst has written other novels of the dark days in Eastern Europe as war approached. In "The World At Night," his subject is France just before its cowardly "defense" against German invasion and the immediate aftermath of France's surrender.
  
  Furst is, as always, a master at depicting the oppressiveness of German occupation. Private cars are requisitioned. Radios must be turned into the authorities or their owners face imprisonment or far worse. The simplest things of life are rationed or unavailable. And always the German occupier and its French collaborators are at hand, threatening.
  
  For a while Parisians try to get on with their lives. Jean-Claude Casson, a producer of B-movies, continues to move on with his lovers, his falling out with his true love Citrine, an ex-wife and her husband and their circle of partying friends.
  
  Bit by bit, some in the circle fall into the orbit of the Germans, profiting handsomely while the French police and their German masters root out Jews and other enemies of the New France.
  
  Casson tries to fight back by becoming involved with British Intelligence --- and a dangerous double-game with the German SD security service.
  
  The plot is thinner than other Furst novels. Still excellent, but it lacks the feeling of oppressiveness and ever-present danger that I've felt in his other work. Casson is, to a certain extent, something of a lightweight and almost extraneous to the story of Paris under German occupation.
  
  Overall, that porrait --- a people who weren't prepared or willing to defend their freedom --- and living with the consequence of such cowardice is the real story here. Furst never fails at painting the dread a subject population must feel every day. But Casson neve quite makes it as a sympathetic or particularly heroic character. He is just sort of an "everyman" caught up in a swirl of events much larger than himseelf. Not unusual in a Furst novel, but not as well-defined either.
  
  Jerry
  
  
• "The World At Night" by Alan Furst: A Complex Pleasure
  By A24XE1Z1MFPPB5 on 2001-06-07
  Review: THE WORLD AT NIGHT by Alan Furst

  Reading Alan Furst's novels about Europe circa 1937-42 is an experience like no other. Immediately the reader is drawn into a world that is, for an American, a revelation. Europe during that time was watching as Hitler marched, with steadily increasing strength, through Germany and then, one by one, through neighboring countries, shifting boundaries and political alignments throughout a Europe that was still exhausted and smarting from the ravages of WW1, the global flu epidemic that immediately followed the war, and the Great Depression. For centuries Europeans have endured through variations of this experience, and there is a sort of cultural memory and mindset that informs European behavior as they feel the ground shifting under them yet again. They are stoic, they are disheartened, they begin to adjust to whatever the new regime may be, and in this case, they sense that it is going to be a particularly ugly one.

  M. Casson is Furst's man for this season. He is a Parisian, a film producer with offices in Paris, a wide network of business friends and associates, a wife with whom he has "an understanding" - they live apart, each of them takes lovers as they wish, but they are friends - and a tendency to fall in love with each woman who crosses his path and attracts his attention, and he is indeed a man who loves women, whether or not they are pretty, shapely, sexy, whatever. Each woman he spends time with fascinates him in her own way, and he is attuned to their complexities and fascinated to learn who they are, and to share their world (and their beds).

  As The World At Night opens, it is May 10, 1940, and Hitler is making his way through Belgium, headed for France. How will the French react? With deft strokes, Furst conjures the French sensibility for us. The French will wait. They have declared war, but fighting the Germans never was worthwhile. They will live with the Germans, hating them as they watch their insensitive occupation of everything French, and specifically for Casson, Parisian.

  Casson's life has been deliciously Parisian; a relaxed approach to business, a love affair now and then, periods of ennui, parties with old friends and lovers. His life has been interchangeable with his art movies, filled with complex women and naive men, all done in shades of gray. Casson's life is about to change.

  Casson is approached by the Resistance to do a job for them - but wait, it turns out this is a fake, an entrapment; fortunately he has declined, and escapes a potentially nasty situation. He is approached by the real Resistance, and because of his circumstances, feels he is ready to make a commitment and indeed, he recognizes that he has little choice, so he agrees to do a job for them. Besides, it involves a journey to southern France, and may offer him the opportunity to search for Citrine, his lost love. Casson has reason to think she may have returned to Marseilles and this is his chance to avoid travel restrictions, find her, and offer her his heart.

  His effort fails, on both counts. And now Furst takes us down with Casson, into the depths of an ancient, dimly-castle, as it were: we go together with Casson as he descends the uneven stone steps lit by smokey torches into a dark, damp, unknowable and ultimately compelling underworld: Paris under siege. Jewish colleagues are banished to America or stay in Paris secretly, fearfully. Nazi businessmen and SS elite take over the restaurants and nightlife, the heartbeat of Paris. Friends align themselves, some with the aggressors, some with the resistance.

  Casson begins to learn his new life. He passes on love affairs - or at least, promising sexual attractions - as he carries his torch relentlessly for Citrine. Very little in his life is under his own control. He accepts assignments for the Resistance, he really has no choice.

  Casson's life becomes that of a stranger, an unwelcome stranger. His world, formerly so gentil, is no longer. Furst draws us into Casson's Paris, a city full of heartbreak, an existence that is uncertain. His world can no longer be seen by looking directly at it. It can be perceived only the way things are seen at dusk, in the early dark. To see anything in the world at night, looking directly at it will not work; you will not see it. You must look beside it, beyond it, and you will see it on the edge of your vision, and capture its image in your peripheral vision only. As Furst etches in the lines of his portrait of Casson, we hold our breath, daring only to look at the story of this man's life from a difficult perspective, as it were, at night.
  
  

• The world at night isn't dark
  By A1P36DUC6H67KA on 2001-08-21
  The one feeling that pervades all of the work of Alan Furst is HOPE...despite the political terror going on all around his characters, one nevers feels that they have reached the realization that the only future remaining is one of despair. In the case of the World at Night, Jean Casson (who continues his adventure in Red Gold) attempts to continue a somewhat normal life despite the Nazi Occupation of France and an ever increasing political vortex from both the right and the left pulling him in and away, constant reminders that he cannot continue his normal existance in abnormal times. He is ultimately compelled to make a choice and follow his conscience which nearly leads to disastrous results. The characters are well drawn and the story is exciting and like all of Furst's books, difficult to put down. This and the other books in the series are highly recommended.
  
  
• German Occupation - Vivid Portrait of Paris, 1940
  By A258HDMERSI6WJ on 2003-09-13
  In the carefully researched novels by Alan Furst we encounter men and women facing extraordinary situations, individuals overwhelmed by historical events. The World at Night makes good reading and offers an intriguing look at France during the first year of occupation.

  Jean Claude Casson, a producer of moderately successful movies, is awakened by news that German forces are attacking. Within days he is conscripted into military service and engaged in filming a documentary on the front line. The French forces crumble and Casson becomes part of the chaotic retreat.

  This rapid collapse of France is followed by German occupation. Furst paints a vivid picture of winter 1940-41 in Paris, a remarkably cold winter, made worse by severe food and fuel shortages. Casson survives, but faces the moral dilemma inherent to all living under military occupation. What activities are just and what activities constitute collaboration with the enemy?

  Casson reluctantly agrees to carry money into Spain for the Resistance. We travel with him, unprepared for contingencies, essentially naive. With each step Casson is closer to disaster. He survives again, but only to become entangled with German counter espionage efforts.

  Jean Claude Casson was not completely satisfactory as a protagonist. He wanders erratically from one woman to another, a behavior shared by key characters in other stories by Alan Furst. His rather sudden deepening love for Citrine was a critical turning point in the plot, but was not entirely convincing. I consequently found the ending abrupt and somewhat implausible.

  Despite this reservation, I highly recommend The World at Night. Alan Furst has created a fascinating portrait of wartime France, not the typical picture of resistance fighters destroying bridges, but a more authentic examination of life under occupation. The World at Night is good history as well as entertaining reading.
  
  

• The World at Night
  By A3EWT60ML9AH5Z on 2005-11-17
  Alan Furst continues to be one of the best reads around. While not as good as his amazing Kingdom of Shadows, this is a book you won't want to put down...even as you try to slow down to make it last longer.
  
  

• Red Gold: A Novel
• The Polish Officer: A Novel
• Night Soldiers: A Novel
• Dark Star: A Novel
• Blood of Victory: A Novel