Rating: 
Summary: An almost palpable shock -
Review: A sad cynicism lies at the root of Greene's dark humor in this very early (1932) novel, Greene's fourth novel and the first entertainment to be written and published for a wide audience. A Jewish businessman, a lesbian journalist, her rebellious young companion, a dancer in need of a job, a Socialist physician wanted in Serbia for treason, and an Austrian thief meet and interact aboard the Orient Express on a trip from London to Istanbul (Stamboul). Each person in this motley group hopes that some remarkable change will occur to him or her as a result of the trip, but though all eventually get their wish, fate has something devious up its sleeve for each one. These twists and turns, sometimes humorous and sometimes immensely sad, constitute the heart of the novel.
Unlike Greene's later novels, with their fully developed characters and religious themes, this novel's characters are often stereotypes, and the action is often designed simply to bring the characters down, showing that no matter what dreams or goals they may have, that ultimately they have no control over their destinies. Greene's later, much more intensely realized themes--sin and atonement, innocence and guilt, love of life and fear of death, piety and corruption, sex and religion--are missing here, and as the action unfolds and the characters are manipulated, the reader easily recognizes the "bones" of the themes which will later come into full flower in Greene's mature philosophical novels. As a series of tours de force, and as a glimpse into the creative process of a writer who, at this point, was just beginning to come into his own, this is an intriguing novel, loaded with insights, a fascinating and enjoyable read. Mary Whipple
Rating: 
Summary: Early Greene novel hints at the greatness to come.
Review: A sad cynicism lies at the root of Greene's dark humor in this very early (1932) novel, Greene's fourth novel and the first entertainment to be written and published for a wide audience. A Jewish businessman, a lesbian journalist, her rebellious young companion, a dancer in need of a job, a Socialist physician wanted in Serbia for treason, and an Austrian thief meet and interact aboard the Orient Express on a trip from London to Istanbul (Stamboul). Each person in this motley group hopes that some remarkable change will occur to him or her as a result of the trip, but though all eventually get their wish, fate has something devious up its sleeve for each one. These twists and turns, sometimes humorous and sometimes immensely sad, constitute the heart of the novel. Unlike Greene's later novels, with their fully developed characters and religious themes, this novel's characters are often stereotypes, and the action is often designed simply to bring the characters down, showing that no matter what dreams or goals they may have, that ultimately they have no control over their destinies. Greene's later, much more intensely realized themes--sin and atonement, innocence and guilt, love of life and fear of death, piety and corruption, sex and religion--are missing here, and as the action unfolds and the characters are manipulated, the reader easily recognizes the "bones" of the themes which will later come into full flower in Greene's mature philosophical novels. As a series of tours de force, and as a glimpse into the creative process of a writer who, at this point, was just beginning to come into his own, this is an intriguing novel, loaded with insights, a fascinating and enjoyable read.
Rating:
Summary: Modern Authors Should Learn From Greene
Review: A young Jewish currant magnate who is only "a Jew" to Europeans; a virginal chorus-girl who is perceived only as a "nice pair of legs"; a newswoman who hates men for their arrogance; a self-impressed murderer; and a fugitive Communist leader are all riding a train whose ultimate destination is Istanboul. Greene skilfully weaves their stories together and apart, forcing the reader to ponder questions about love, sex, duty, and morality.
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining "Entertainment"
Review: As an "Entertainment," "Stamboul Train" is quite entertaining. Graham Greene writes with a strong sense of humor as he describes an interesting assortment of individuals riding the Orient Express across Europe to Istanbul. Though there isn't much of a plot, the odd and unpredictable occurs on this journey. Greene develops his characters to the point that the reader can't help but eagerly wonder how each individual will react to the many bizarre encounters on and off the train. Not one of Greene's better known works, but a pleasure to read nonetheless.
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining "Entertainment"
Review: As an "Entertainment," "Stamboul Train" is quite entertaining. Graham Greene writes with a strong sense of humor as he describes an interesting assortment of individuals riding the Orient Express across Europe to Istanbul. Though there isn't much of a plot, the odd and unpredictable occurs on this journey. Greene develops his characters to the point that the reader can't help but eagerly wonder how each individual will react to the many bizarre encounters on and off the train. Not one of Greene's better known works, but a pleasure to read nonetheless.
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining "Entertainment"
Review: As an "Entertainment," "Stamboul Train" is quite entertaining. Graham Greene writes with a strong sense of humor as he describes an interesting assortment of individuals riding the Orient Express across Europe to Istanbul. Though there isn't much of a plot, the odd and unpredictable occurs on this journey. Greene develops his characters to the point that the reader can't help but eagerly wonder how each individual will react to the many bizarre encounters on and off the train. Not one of Greene's better known works, but a pleasure to read nonetheless.
Rating:
Summary: Musical Chairs on the Orient Express
Review: Boarding the Orient Express to Istanbul are the Jewish merchant Myatt; a busybody Lesbian yellow-journalist named Mabel Warren; a mysterious doctor who calls himself Richard John, but who is actually the Serbian socialist agitator Czinner; Mrs Warren's soon to be ex-protege Janet Pardoe; and a penniless chorus girl named Coral Musker. It all sounds like an Agatha Christie novel -- but Greene had different fish to fry. Just when the story seems to take on a Dame Christie neatness, it all comes unravelled at the little border town of Subotica. Musker, who had found in Myatt a potential sugar daddy, tries to invite the Doctor to a celebration, but is whisked away as an accomplice to Czinner. Myatt at first searches for Coral, but is drawn to Janet Pardoe's greater classiness. And Mabel Warren, who had left the train at Vienna, suddenly shows up in Subotica to claim Coral Musker for her own. There are a few other characters, such as Josef Grunlich the Austrian thief; but my favorite is the purser at Ostend who cries out to Coral Musker, "Remember me!" even as he begins to forget her features. We are not dealing with a deep work like Greene's later, more serious efforts. Instead of a Shakespearean tragedy, we have on our hands instead a tragicomedy like ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL or MEASURE FOR MEASURE. Dr Czinner is executed, and everybody else seems to change partners as if it were a game of Musical Chairs. Graham Greene says it all when he quotes George Santayana in STAMBOUL TRAIN's epigraph: "Everything in nature is lyrical in its ideal essence; tragic in its fate and comic in its existence."
Rating: 
Summary: An Unentertainment!
Review: Contrary to other reviewers I found this slim "thriller" (Greene's fourth book, and first "entertainment") to be rather lacking in suspense. Fortunately, I know I'm not alone, because the majority of my book group felt similarly (with one passionate exception). Basically, Greene throws a lot of semi-interesting characters onto the famous Orient Express, and lets them bounce off each other for a while. The main characters are a young, rich Jewish currant tycoon, a young chorus girl, a Communist exile returning to lead an uprising in Belgrade, a narcissistic thief and murder, a lesbian newspaperwoman, her disinterested companion, and a popular novelist. None of the characters emerges as particularly sympathetic, and the treatment of the Jew and the lesbian are particularly distasteful. It's debatable as to why they portrayed this way, but whatever the reason, it distracts from what little plot there is. This is the second Greene entertainment (This Gun For Hire being the other) that's utterly failed to entertain me.
Rating:
Summary: An almost palpable shock -
Review: I've read a number of Graham Greene's more acclaimed and "serious" novels and had a variety of reactions, from "loved it!" ("The End of the Affair") to "couldn't get through a chapter" ("The Quiet American"). But none of these prepared me for "Stamboul Train." Modestly described as an "entertainment," and later more or less dismissed by its author, this novel turned out to be, truly, one of the most amazing and moving books I've ever read. This is an early novel, but there's nothing raw about it. The characters are superficially "stereotypes," but the book turns out to be about the power that externally prescribed roles possess, in life as well as art. Each of the characters, from Myatt the "rich spoiled Jew" to Coral the plain, innocent chorus girl, turn out to be something different from their types, yet they're never wholly able to escape from them. I can't think of an author, except possibly Tolstoy, who does a better job conveying characters who believe two (or three or seven) things at the same time than Greene does here. Greene does employ stereotypes, particularly of Jews and lesbians, and that might be one reason the book is out of fashion. Yet Greene explicitly grapples with and explodes the stereotype, in the case of Myatt. Even the lesbian lady journalist, who doesn't fare as well (Greene's portrayal of her borders on mean-spiritedness) is so richly characterized and individual that she takes on a life beyond the stereotype. I haven't even touched on Greene's innovative use of point-of-view - a multi-faceted third-person, with sudden shifts hardly united by an overarching consciousness. The effect mirrors the way these "strangers on a train" slip in and out of each other's lives. It also produces one of the most amazing bedroom scenes I've ever read.
And if the last line doesn't break your heart, I'll give you your money back -
Rating:
Summary: An almost palpable shock -
Review: I've read a number of Graham Greene's more acclaimed and "serious" novels and had a variety of reactions, from "loved it!" ("The End of the Affair") to "couldn't get through a chapter" ("The Quiet American"). But none of these prepared me for "Stamboul Train." Modestly described as an "entertainment," and later more or less dismissed by its author, this novel turned out to be, truly, one of the most amazing and moving books I've ever read. This is an early novel, but there's nothing raw about it. The characters are superficially "stereotypes," but the book turns out to be about the power that externally prescribed roles possess, in life as well as art. Each of the characters, from Myatt the "rich spoiled Jew" to Coral the plain, innocent chorus girl, turn out to be something different from their types, yet they're never wholly able to escape from them. I can't think of an author, except possibly Tolstoy, who does a better job conveying characters who believe two (or three or seven) things at the same time than Greene does here. Greene does employ stereotypes, particularly of Jews and lesbians, and that might be one reason the book is out of fashion. Yet Greene explicitly grapples with and explodes the stereotype, in the case of Myatt. Even the lesbian lady journalist, who doesn't fare as well (Greene's portrayal of her borders on mean-spiritedness) is so richly characterized and individual that she takes on a life beyond the stereotype. I haven't even touched on Greene's innovative use of point-of-view - a multi-faceted third-person, with sudden shifts hardly united by an overarching consciousness. The effect mirrors the way these "strangers on a train" slip in and out of each other's lives. It also produces one of the most amazing bedroom scenes I've ever read.
And if the last line doesn't break your heart, I'll give you your money back -
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