Eye of the Needle is a spy thriller novel written by British author Ken Follett. It was originally published in 1978 by the Penguin Group titled Storm Island. This novel was Follett's first successful, bestselling effort as a novelist, and it earned him the 1979 Edgar Award for Best Novel from the Mystery Writers of America. The book was made into a motion picture in 1981 with a screenplay adapted by Stanley Mann and directed by Richard Marquand.
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Plot introduction
Operation Fortitude was the massive counter-intelligence operation undertaken by the Allies during World War II. The goal of the operation was to divert German military troops from Normandy, the site of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of France. If the German OKW (High Command, Oberkommando der Wehrmacht) were convinced that the invasion was to come at Calais, those resources would not be able to reach the battlefield, blocked by the Seine river. To that end, the Allies created the fictitious First U.S. Army Group (FUSAG), positioned in southern England, near the Pas de Calais. FUSAG looked like a massive concentration of troops -- at least, from an aerial photograph. At ground level, FUSAG could be made for what it really was: a charade. In Eye of the Needle, Follett explores the possibility of a German spy managing to take pictures of the faux buildup, and his journey to get those pictures in the hands of Hitler.
List of characters
- Henry Faber - "Die Nadel", German spy (played by Donald Sutherland)
- David Rose - young R.A.F. fighter pilot (played by Christopher Cazenove)
- Lucy Rose - David Rose's wife (played by Kate Nelligan)
- Billy Parkin - young Army soldier who knows what Faber looks like (played by Philip Martin Brown)
- Percival Godliman - MI5 agent
- Frederick Bloggs - MI5 agent
See also
- Operation Fortitude
- First United States Army Group (fictional)
