was it in the end of the affair, or the heart of the matter - one of the two - i used to keep both in my room at school, with plenty of post-its marking out all the most depressing passages - where someone (sarah? scobie?) said that you regret the lying and destruction but would never regret the love? that might be the only comforting thing i've ever got out of greene, and even then not all that comforting either.