Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene is a darkly comedic spy novel set in 1950s Cuba, blending satire, political intrigue, and absurdity. The story follows James Wormold, a struggling British vacuum cleaner salesman in Havana, who is unexpectedly recruited by the British Secret Service as a spy.
Desperate for money to support his extravagant teenage daughter, Wormold fabricates intelligence reports, inventing a network of agents and even submitting vacuum cleaner designs as secret military blueprints. However, his harmless deception spirals out of control when real spies, assassins, and political forces start taking an interest in his work.
With sharp wit and a cynical take on Cold War espionage, Our Man in Havana is both a comedy of errors and a biting critique of intelligence agencies and bureaucratic incompetence. It remains one of Graham Greene’s most entertaining and satirical novels.