Don’t be seduced by the title. It has nothing to do with Ancient Porn. Though of course there is the obligatory sex, though this time a post-war liaison with a Bletchley Park lesbian, befriending an old enemy, and a barren marriage. No, this is about England. Not the stylised version of a green and pleasant land, but of the emotionally stunted orphan refugees of the Raj, of the war, of drafty public schools, of poor food, poor teeth, and a weekly bath, if lucky. Of the Inner Temple. And Malaya. And Hong Kong (hidden in the title, but I won’t ruin it for you.) Of how it was. For a man with a long life, a stammer, and a secret. The writing is spare and delectable. It would have been perfect to read curled up in front of a fire. But even though it is summer, it is still England, and in between a heat wave there are ample opportunities to gratefully put on this old pullover with the holes in the elbows and hunker down.
5 stars
ERIC
