|
|
Books : Comrade JIn association with Amazon.comby: Pete Earley  List Price: $25.95 Amazon.com's Price: $17.13 You Save: $8.82 (34%)Prices subject to change. Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
This item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping.
Binding: HardcoverDewey Decimal Number: 327.1247073092 EAN: 9780399154393 ISBN: 0399154396 Label: Putnam Adult Manufacturer: Putnam Adult Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 352 Publication Date: January 24, 2008 Publisher: Putnam Adult Studio: Putnam Adult Sales Rank: 25640 Related Items:
Editorial Review: Product Description: Spymaster, defector, double agent-the remarkable true story of the man who ran Russia's post-Cold War spy program in America. In 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed, the Cold War ended, and a new world order began. We thought everything had changed. But one thing never changed: the spies. From 1997 to 2000, a man known as "Comrade J" was the highest-ranking operative in the SVR-the successor agency to the KGB-in the United States. He directed all Russian spy action in New York City, and personally oversaw every covert operation against the United States and its allies in the United Nations. He recruited spies, planted agents, penetrated security, manipulated intelligence, and influenced American policy, all under the direct leadership of Boris Yeltsin and then Vladimir Putin. He was a legend in the SVR, the man who kept the secrets. Then in 2000, he defected-and it turned out he had one more secret. For the previous two years, he had also been a double agent for the FBI: "By far the most important Russian spy that our side has had in decades." He has never granted a public interview. The FBI and CIA have refused to answer all media questions about him. He has remained in hiding. He has never revealed his secrets . . . Until now. Comrade J, written by the bestselling author of Family of Spies and The Hot House, is his story, a direct account of what he did in the U.S. after we all assumed the spying was over, and of what Putin and Russia continue to do today. The revelations are stunning. It is also the story of growing up in a family of agents dating back to the revolution; of how Russia molded him into one of its most high-flying operatives; of the day-to-day perils of living a double, then triple, life; and finally of how his growing disquiet with the corruption and ambitions of the "new Russia" led him to take the most perilous step of all. Many spies have told their stories. None has the astonishing immediacy, relevance, and cautionary warnings of Comrade J. Average Rating:
 Rating: - InterestingThis gives a very interesting insight into the "post Cold-War" intelligence operations of the Soviet/Russian intelligence community. There's nothing truly earth-shattering as far as named sources go, but an interesting read nonetheless. Rating: - Somewhat over simplisticA somewhat over simplistic overview of Russian Intelligence operations of the time. To me this book was interesting but seemed to gloss over a lot of issues in order to keep the page count down. What the book did say was interesting and somewhat infuriating that we let this go on. But it offers insight however simple the author offered. Rating:  - Too Many Agatha Christie MomentsI enjoyed reading "Comrade J," by Pete Earley, and I imagine that most others who are specialists in Russian Affairs will find points of interest as well, but in the end the book stands as a flawed work with too many "Agatha Christie moments" (where uninteresting facts are replaced by more interesting fiction). Earley's book is most compelling when it quotes Sergey Tretyakov about his own personal activities, such as the recruitment of spies in Canada, the internal operations of the Russian Mission ... Read More Rating: - Valuable behind-the-scenes look at RussiaEarley's book is a well written biography of one of Russia's leading and well-placed spies in Canada and the U.S. who defected to the United States bringing a great deal of valuable intelligence with him. The CIA and FBI will not openly confirm the details of Tretyakov's story, and because of the defection, traveling to Russia would submit the author to a risk to his own safety. Earley is therefore forced to relate the story in more of a "Sergei says" manner to avoid appearing to stand behind the details ... Read More Rating:  - Must ReadThis is a groundbreaking book, revealing the evolutionary changes in the modern spy game. One learns more about the political realities of modern Russia through this lens than anything any western journalist could find. One sees what today's leaders want hidden as well as what they want exposed. There are some golden oldy's here as well. I found the KGB "scientific" corruption of Carl Sagan and his nuclear winter to be hilarious. Browse for similar items by category:
|
||