Dirty Story (novel)

Dirty Story: A Further Account of the Life and Adventures of Arthur Abdel Simpson is a 1967 novel by Eric Ambler. It was also published as This Gun for Hire.[1][2][3]

Dirty Story
First edition
(publ. The Bodley Head)
AuthorEric Ambler
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
PublisherThe Bodley Head
Publication date
1967
Media typePrint
OCLC1264477400
Preceded byA Kind of Anger 
Followed byThe Intercom Conspiracy 

The book continues the life of Ambler's anti-hero, petty criminal Arthur Abdel Simpson, a man whose English father and Egyptian mother have given him uncertain citizenship. Simpson took part in a daring Istanbul robbery in Ambler's earlier novel The Light of Day.

In Dirty Story Simpson faces the prospect of becoming a penniless exile, a non-citizen of any country. He is forced to become a mercenary for a cynical Central African mining company seeking to secure control of land rich in rare earth ores. He is a misfit with little military experience and is unsuited for the role of mercenary; however, he manages to outwit his ruthless adversaries who are seasoned professionals.

This is one of several novels by Ambler in which statelessness or the danger of becoming stateless (an exile, not a citizen of any country and unwelcome in all countries) features prominently in the plot.[4][5]

It was nominated for the 1967 Gold Dagger award.

References
  1. "This Gun for Hire by Eric Ambler: 9780307950055 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  2. "This Gun For Hire". Eric Ambler. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  3. Ambler, Eric (11 December 2012). This Gun for Hire. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-95005-5. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  4. Lassner, Phyllis (2016). Espionage and exile : fascism and anti-fascism in British spy fiction and film. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 9781474401104.
  5. Noble, Michael (15 October 2018). "Our Man in Europe: Eric Ambler and the 1930s". The History Foundry. Retrieved 21 December 2021.


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