Books: Caveat for the General

THE DAY OF THE JACKAL by Frederick Forsyth. 380 pages. Viking. $7.95.

John Wilkes Booth at least had the grace to shout "Sic semper tyrannis!" Until lately, most political assassins have felt obliged to dress up their acts of public murder with some pretext of historic purpose. But the Jackal, an Englishman and pseudo gentleman, yearns for nothing more uplifting than the good life. When he gets an assignment from the OAS (France's antigovernment secret army of the early 1960s) to do in Charles de Gaulle, he looks on it simply as a "once in a lifetime job." If he brings it...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!