Alan Furst (; born 1941) is a

Jewish-American American Jews or Jewish Americans are American citizens who are Jewish, whether by religion, ethnicity, culture, or nationality. Today the Jewish community in the United States consists primarily of Ashkenazi Jews, who descend from diaspora Je ...

author of historical

spy novel Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intelligen ...

s. Furst has been called "an heir to the tradition of

Eric Ambler Eric Clifford Ambler OBE (28 June 1909 – 22 October 1998) was an English author of thrillers, in particular spy novels, who introduced a new realism to the genre. Also working as a screenwriter, Ambler used the pseudonym Eliot Reed for bo ...

and

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquir ...

," whom he cites along with

Joseph Roth Moses Joseph Roth (2 September 1894 – 27 May 1939) was an Austrian journalist and novelist, best known for his family saga '' Radetzky March'' (1932), about the decline and fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, his novel of Jewish life '' Job'' ...

and

Arthur Koestler Arthur Koestler, (, ; ; hu, Kösztler Artúr; 5 September 1905 – 1 March 1983) was a Hungarian-born author and journalist. Koestler was born in Budapest and, apart from his early school years, was educated in Austria. In 1931, Koestler join ...

as important influences. Most of his novels since 1988 have been set just prior to or during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

and he is noted for his successful evocations of

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...

an peoples and places during the period from 1933 to 1944.

Biography

Furst was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, and raised on the

Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

. His family has ancestors in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

, and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

. His great-grandfather was drafted into the Russian army, and, as a Jew, was required to serve 20 years. He attended the

Horace Mann School , motto_translation = Great is the truth and it prevails , address = 231 West 246th Street , city = The Bronx , state = New York , zipcode = 10471 , countr ...

, received a B.A. from

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest coeducational liberal arts college in the United States and the second oldest continuously operating coeducational institute of highe ...

in 1962, and an M.A. from Penn State in 1967. While attending general studies courses at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, he became acquainted with

Margaret Mead Margaret Mead (December 16, 1901 – November 15, 1978) was an American cultural anthropologist who featured frequently as an author and speaker in the mass media during the 1960s and the 1970s. She earned her bachelor's degree at Barnard C ...

, for whom he later worked. Before becoming a full-time novelist, Furst worked in advertising and wrote magazine articles, most notably for ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

'', and as a columnist for the ''

International Herald Tribune The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France for international English-speaking readers. It had the aim of becoming "the world's first global newspaper" and could fairly be said ...

''.

Early writings

Furst's papers were obtained by the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at The University of Texas at Austin. They include a 1963 letter from his grandfather, Max Stockman, which urged Furst to become a teacher and 'write as a sideline' in his spare time. The collection also includes early articles on a wide variety of topics, published in many magazines for which no common denominator can be found, including ''

Architectural Digest ''Architectural Digest'' is an American monthly magazine founded in 1920. Its principal subjects are interior design and landscaping, rather than pure external architecture. The magazine is published by Condé Nast, which also publishes internati ...

'', ''

Elle ''Elle'' (stylized ''ELLE'') is a worldwide women's magazine of French origin that offers a mix of fashion and beauty content, together with culture, society and lifestyle. The title means "she" or "her" in French. ''Elle'' is considered the w ...

'', ''Esquire'', ''

50 Plus 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. It has attained significance throughout history in part because typical humans have five digits on ...

'', ''International Herald Tribune'', ''Islands'', ''New Choices'', ''

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

'', ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', ''Pursuits'', ''

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...

'', and ''

Seattle Weekly The ''Seattle Weekly'' is an alternative biweekly distributed newspaper in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded by Darrell Oldham and David Brewster as ''The Weekly.'' Its first issue was published on March 31, 1976. The newspaper ...

''. The Ransom collection remarks: "Of note is the April 1984 ''Esquire'' article, 'The Danube Blues,' which sparked Furst's interest in writing espionage novels. Numerous slides of his 1983 Danube trip are also available. Unproduced

screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, f ...

s include 'Heroes of the Last War' (1984), and 'Warsaw' (1992)." His early novels (1976–1983) achieved limited success. One item, held in the Ransom collection, includes the manuscript for "One Smart Cookie" (with

Debbi Fields Debbi Fields (born September 18, 1956) is the founder and spokesperson of Mrs. Fields Bakeries. She has written several cookbooks and makes cookies. A resident of Memphis, Tennessee for over 16 years since she remarried in 1997, she moved to N ...

, 1987), a commissioned biography of the owner of the Mrs. Fields Cookies company. The year 1988 saw publication of ''Night Soldiers''—inspired by his 1984 trip to

on assignment for ''Esquire''—which invigorated his career and led to a succession of related titles. His output since 1988 includes a dozen works. He is especially noted for his successful evocations of

an peoples and places during the period from 1933 to 1944. While all his historical espionage novels are loosely connected (protagonists in one book might appear as minor characters in another), only ''The World at Night'' and ''Red Gold'' share a common plot. Writing in ''The New York Times'', the novelist Justin Cartwright says that Furst, who lives in

Sag Harbor Sag Harbor is an incorporated village in Suffolk County, New York, United States, in the towns of Southampton and East Hampton on eastern Long Island. The village developed as a working port on Gardiner's Bay. The population was 2,772 at the 2 ...

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...

, "has adopted a European sensibility." Awarded a Fulbright teaching fellowship in 1969, Furst moved to Sommières, France, outside of

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2018, 290,053 people l ...

, and taught at the

University of Montpellier The University of Montpellier (french: Université de Montpellier) is a public research university located in Montpellier, in south-east of France. Established in 1220, the University of Montpellier is one of the oldest universities in the wor ...

. He later lived for many years in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

, a city that he calls "the heart of civilisation" which figures significantly in all his novels. In 2011, the Tulsa Library Trust in

Tulsa Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region wit ...

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

selected Furst to receive its

Helmerich Award The Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award is an American literary prize awarded by the Tulsa Library Trust in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It is awarded annually to an "internationally acclaimed" author who has "written a distinguished body of work an ...

, a

literary prize A literary award or literary prize is an award presented in recognition of a particularly lauded literary piece or body of work. It is normally presented to an author. Organizations Most literary awards come with a corresponding award ceremony. Ma ...

given annually to honor a distinguished author's body of work.David Harper
"Spy novelist Alan Furst chosen for 2011 Helmerich Award"
''

Tulsa World The ''Tulsa World'' is the daily newspaper for the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and primary newspaper for the northeastern and eastern portions of Oklahoma. Tulsa World Media Company is part of Lee Enterprises. The new owners announced in January 20 ...

'', March 6, 2011. In 2012, he appeared in a documentary about the life and work of author

W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

, ''Revealing Mr. Maugham''.

Works

Stand-alone novel

*''Shadow Trade'' (1983)

Roger Levin

#''Your Day in the Barrel'' (1976) #''The Paris Drop'' (1980) #''The Caribbean Account'' (1981)

''Night Soldiers'' novels

#''Night Soldiers'' (1988) #''Dark Star'' (1991) #'' The Polish Officer'' (1995) #''

The World at Night The World At Night (TWAN) is an international project to produce and present a collection of high-quality photos, videos, and virtual reality (VR) images of the night sky taken at various natural, cultural, and historic locations worldwide. Bas ...

'' (1996) #''Red Gold'' (1999) #''

Kingdom of Shadows ''Kingdom of Shadows'' (2000) is a novel by Alan Furst. It won the 2001 Hammett Prize. Plot summary The story is set in Europe between April 1938 and July 1939, a time of ever-increasing fear and apprehension throughout the continent. ''Nichol ...

'' (2000) #''Blood of Victory'' (2003) #''Dark Voyage'' (2004) #''The Foreign Correspondent'' (2006) #'' The Spies of Warsaw'' (2008) #''Spies of the Balkans'' (2010) #''Mission to Paris'' (2012) #''Midnight in Europe'' (2014) #''A Hero of France'' (2016) #''Under Occupation'' (2019)

Crossovers

Secondary characters who appear in more than one Furst novel include: * Ilya Goldman,

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...

(''Night Soldiers'', ''Dark Star'', ''Kingdom of Shadows'', ''The Foreign Correspondent'') * Ivan Ivanovich Agayants, NKVD ''(Night Soldiers, Dark Star'') * Colonel Vassily Antipin (''Night Soldiers'', ''Red Gold'') * General Bloch, GRU (''Night Soldiers'', ''Dark Star'') * Renate Braun, Comintern foreign specialist (''Night Soldiers'', ''Dark Star'') * Maltsaev, NKVD (''Night Soldiers'', ''Dark Star'') * Voyschinkowsky, The Lion of the Bourse (''Night Soldiers'', ''Dark Star'', ''The Polish Officer'', ''Kingdom of Shadows, The Foreign Correspondent'') * Colonel Anton Vyborg, Polish military intelligence (''The Polish Officer'', ''Dark Star'', ''The Spies of Warsaw'') * Count Janos Polanyi (''Kingdom of Shadows'', ''Blood of Victory'', ''Dark Star'', ''The Foreign Correspondent'', ''Mission To Paris'', ''Midnight in Europe'') * S. Kolb, British agent (''Dark Voyage'', ''The Foreign Correspondent'', ''Spies of the Balkans'', briefly in ''Midnight in Europe'', ''A Hero of France'') * Max de Lyon, spy and owner of Le Cygne night club (''Midnight in Europe'', ''A Hero of France'') * Stavros, spy and friend of Max de Lyon (''Midnight in Europe'', ''A Hero of France'') * Dr. Lapp, Abwehr (''Kingdom of Shadows'', ''The Spies of Warsaw''; mentioned in ''Blood of Victory'') * Boris Balki, Russian emigre bartender in Paris (''Kingdom of Shadows'', ''Blood of Victory'') * Mark Shublin, Polish painter (''Kingdom of Shadows'', ''The Spies of Warsaw'') * Louis Fischfang, screenwriter (''The Foreign Correspondent, The World at Night''; is mentioned a few times, but does not appear, in ''Red Gold'') * Lady Marensohn, American/British agent (''Night Soldiers'', ''The World at Night'') * Jean Casson, a film producer and protagonist of ''The World At Night'' and ''Red Gold'', is mentioned, but does not appear, in ''Mission To Paris'') * Ivanic, NKVD assassin (''The World At Night'', ''Red Gold'') * Cara Dionello, Nicholas Morath's Argentine girlfriend (''Kingdom Of Shadows'', ''The Foreign Correspondent'') * British intelligence operatives in Europe (mainly Paris), such as ** Lady Angela Hope (appears in ''Night Soldiers'' and ''Dark Star''; mentioned in ''Red Gold'', ''The Foreign Correspondent'', ''Kingdom of Shadows'', ''Blood of Victory'') ** Roddy Fitzware (''Night Soldiers'', ''Dark Star'') ** Mr. Brown (''Night Soldiers'', ''Blood of Victory'', ''Dark Voyage'', ''The Foreign Correspondent'') * Momo Tsipler & his Wienerwald Companions, a night-club act (''Dark Star'', ''Blood of Victory'' and ''The Foreign Correspondent'') * Brasserie Heininger, Paris restaurant (every book; inspired by the real-life Bistro Bofinger)

References

External links

Alan Furst.net

Our Best Thriller Writer

Inventory of Alan Furst Papers 1961-2005
at the

Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center The Harry Ransom Center (until 1983 the Humanities Research Center) is an archive, library and museum at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the Americas and Europe for the p ...

at the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

.
Writers Reflect
with Alan Furst at the

Harry Ransom Center The Harry Ransom Center (until 1983 the Humanities Research Center) is an archive, library and museum at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the Americas and Europe for the pur ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Furst, Alan 1941 births 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American novelists American historical novelists American male novelists American spy fiction writers Horace Mann School alumni Jewish American novelists Living people Novelists from New York (state) Oberlin College alumni Pennsylvania State University alumni People from Sag Harbor, New York People from the Upper West Side