'' The Little Drummer Girl '' is a spy novel by John le Carré , published in 1983 . The story follows the manipulations of Martin Kurtz , an Israeli spymaster who intends to kill Khalil – a Palestinian terrorist who is bombing Jewish-related targets in Europe , particularly Germany – and Charlie , an English actress and double agent working on behalf of the Israelis . Despite the plot , some reviewers thought it transcended the spy novel genre . " '' The Little Drummer Girl '' is about spies " , said William F. Buckley , writing in '' The New York Times '' , " as '' Madame Bovary '' is about adultery or '' Crime and Punishment '' about crime . " The real-life person believed to be the model for the title character was Janet Lee Stevens – American journalist , human rights advocate , and scholar of Arabic literature nicknamed " the little drummer girl " by Palestinians . She gave John le Carré a tour of the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps in Lebanon . She died in the bombing of the U.S. embassy of Beirut in 1983
Sabra and Shatila
Sabra and Shatila massacre
The Little Drummer Girl