Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team

Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team
Average customer rating:

infsoldier0441

Not worth the effort

Good stuff about S.F

Inside story

Fairly Interesting

Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team
Michael Smith
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books
General | United States | Military | History | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10

Chosen Soldier: The Making of a Special Forces Warrior

Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army

Licensed to Kill: Hired Guns in the War on Terror

Roughneck Nine-One: The Extraordinary Story of a Special Forces A-team at War

ASIN: 0312362722
Release Date: 2007-03-06

Book Description

A top-secret U.S. Army Special Operations unit has been running covert missions all over the world, from leading death squads to the hideout of drug baron Pablo Escobar to assassinating key al Qaeda members, including Iraqi leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and, in one of their greatest missions, capturing Saddam Hussein. 'The Activity," as it became known to insiders, has achieved near-mythical status, even among the world's Special Operations elite. Now journalist Michael Smith gets inside this clandestine military team to expose their explosive history and secrets.

The Activity’s story begins with the abortive attempt to rescue the American hostages from Iran in 1980. One of the main reasons Operation Eagle Claw failed was a chronic lack of intel on the ground, so in January 1981, U.S. military chiefs set up the “Intelligence Support Activity,” a cover name for a secret army surveillance team that could operate undercover anywhere in the world. Hidden from the politicians and the government bean counters, it would carry out deniable operations preparing the way for Delta and SEAL Team Six.

Michael Smith has spoken to many former members of the Activity, and we follow them on operations from the war on the drug barons that led Colombian "death squads" to the hideouts of Pablo Escobar and his men. We learn of more recent missions, including snatching war criminals from their safe houses in the Balkans (at one time disguising themselves as French soldiers to lull a Serb warlord into a false sense of security), and operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Horn of Africa. Killer Elite reveals the incredible truth behind the world's most secret Special Operations organization, a unit that is at the forefront of the War on Terror.

Customer Reviews:

infsoldier0441.......2007-08-29

I found this book to be a great read. To me this book went into great detail about the "behind the scenes" aspects. From reading many other books related to the Global War Terrorism, mainly dealing with the special forces aspect, I was able to "tie all of their stories together". This book fills in many blanks in military operations in the Tier 1 arena, as well as exposing you to a small group of absolute professionals. This book also holds nothing back in revealing how unglamorous and non-Hollywood Special Forces and the military in general are. I highly recomend this book to anyone interested in this little known area of the Department of Defense.

Not worth the effort.......2007-08-21

I tend to be someone who likes to utilize my time effectively. Even when reading for entertainment, as was the case when I bought this book. Unfortunately, it was more a lesson in the inner political battle that ensued about Special Operation Forces and their leaders. I more than once got a taste of Smith's views on the Iraq war, especially when he talks about why we went into Iraq, which had absolutely noting to do with the topic of the book. You can probably guess he painted a picture of, "there was no good reason to go into Iraq." Same liberal nonsense the media pushes on us everyday.

The only reason he is getting two stars and not one is for the few interesting pages that actually talk about operations. Otherwise a complete waste of time.

Good stuff about S.F.......2007-08-19

This is a book well worth reading if the subject of today's Special Forces and selectively targeting badguy's interests you. Much of what the highly secretive 'Army of Northern Virginia' has been doing for the past 3 decades is revealed here. If you are someone interested in the above subject. I would also recommend: The Phoenix and the Birds of Prey, The Hunt for The Engineer and the book: Striking back.

Inside story.......2007-07-24

I was enlightened and enjoyed the book. Easy reading but somewhat disturbing to find that our countries political and military leadership cannot mak timely decisions that are able to insure national security.

Fairly Interesting.......2007-07-16

This book on the ISA had some new info, but mostly material I have read in other places. A pretty good book overall. I found some chronological mistakes, but I find more and more that this is commonplace in these kinds of books that must expound on historical events; so much for the editor doing his job. I liked it and would recommend it to others who want to know how the U S Govt is handling the more touchy military ops. These (ISA) are the guys you never read or hear about unless someone writes about them. This is the book for that.

Wilderness of Mirrors: Intrigue, Deception, and the Secrets that Destroyed Two of the Cold War's Most Important Agents

Average customer rating:

The contagious paranoia of counterintelligence...
Help! The Lunatics Have Taken Over the Asylum!!!
Anti-Angleton

Wilderness of Mirrors: Intrigue, Deception, and the Secrets that Destroyed Two of the Cold War's Most Important Agents
David C. Martin
Manufacturer: The Lyons Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Espionage | True Accounts | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Spytime: The Undoing of James Jesus Angleton
Molehunt: The Secret Search for Traitors That Shattered the CIA
The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB
Cold Warrior: James Jesus Angleton - Cia's Master Spy Hunter
The Secret History of the CIA

ASIN: 1585748242

Book Description

Customer Reviews:

The contagious paranoia of counterintelligence..........2006-01-01

The term, "wilderness of mirrors," is still used today in counterintelligence circles to denote the feelings of paranoia that sometimes develop in the byzantine business of spyhunting, when one is no longer able to distinguish between what is real and what is illusion. When conjuring up images of this precise phenomenon, no name rings louder than that of James Jesus Angleton, who himself was enveloped and ultimately destroyed by his obsession with uncovering a "mole" within the CIA.

Martin's brief account of the CIA's largely unsuccessful efforts to spy on the Soviet Union during the Cold War alternates between the stories of "Jim" Angleton and "Bill" Harvey, two CIA trailblazers who undoubtedly left their marks in their profession. What's unfortunate is that while they may have scored some early successes, they spent the latter parts of their careers in shambles, with both resigning under hostile circumstances. Especially in Angleton's case, it is tough to objectively determine whether he did more good than bad.

For a more detailed account of the CI fiasco involving Angleton, Golitsin, and Nosenko, check out David Wise's "Molehunt."

Help! The Lunatics Have Taken Over the Asylum!!!.......2005-08-16

This book, which relates the ongoing war between the CIA and the KGB, focuses on the activities of William K. Harvey, a gun-totin' ex-FBI agent (who does not seem to have entirely evolved in a social sense), and James Jesus Angleton, a Yale graduate who lived first in Italy and then in England, where he learned the fine arts of counter-espionage at the knees, as it were, of Kim Philby, and was in charge of counter-espionage at the CIA. The revelation that the latter was a KGB penetration agent in British Intelligence seems to have engendered extreme paranoia in the former, who was ever after on the lookout for moles in the Agency (and was even suspected by some of his colleagues of being one himself).

The tales of covert operations range from the amusing (an agent loitering in a park to make a dead-letter drop being arrested as a potential child molester) to the appalling (the dastardly enticement of the Soviet defector Yuri Nosenko with promises of a salaried job and then keeping him in what was tantamount to a cage for 1277 days (292 of which were devoted to interrogation) [p, 171], all because of the dubious word of Anatoli Golitsin, a previous defector--living high off the hog at taxpayer expense--who warned that the next defector would be a KGB plant.). Angleton placed his faith unstintingly in Golitsin, whose wild scenarios had Averell Harriman, a former United States ambassador to the Soviet Union, cast as a KGB agent. It never seems to have occurred to Angleton that Golitsin may have been the KGB plant, intent on making mischief.

The title, "Wilderness of Mirrors," was apparently coined by Angleton, who was a poet in his spare time. It refers to the labyrinthine world of espionage into which one is "lured deeper and deeper ... pursuing the traces of Soviet plots, both real and imagined, each step taking [one] farther into a bewildering world of intrigue ... [p. 10].

The author notes the justification of the battle between the CIA and the KGB, but he also cites the absurdity of its reality. "The careers of Angleton and Harvey were mired in absurdities, not the least of which was that they habitually violated the democratic freedoms they were sworn to defend . . . Immersed in duplicity and insulated by secrecy, they developed survival mechanisms and behavior patterns that by any rational standard were bizarre. The forced inbreeding of secrecy spawned mutant deeds and thoughts. Loyalty demanded dishonesty, and duty was a thieves' game. The game attracted strange men and slowly twisted them until something snapped. There were no winners or losers in this game, only victims" [p. 226].

Anti-Angleton.......2004-01-06

This is one of the anti-Angleton books. You you want to understand Angelton's approach to counter-intelligence, I would recommend Edward Jay Epstein's "Deception" instead.

A Spy at the Heart of the Third Reich: The Extraordinary Story of Fritz Kolbe, America's Most Important Spy in World War II

Average customer rating:

The spy who was left out in the cold
Unforgettable Tale About An Unsung Hero of World War II
True but Incredible Story
Tale of a Hero

A Spy at the Heart of the Third Reich: The Extraordinary Story of Fritz Kolbe, America's Most Important Spy in World War II
Lucas Delattre
Manufacturer: Atlantic Monthly Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Counterspy: Memoirs of a Counterintelligence Officer in World War II and the Cold War
CODENAME: MAGPIE: The Final Nazi Espionage Mission Against the U.S. in WW II
Hitler's Spies: German Military Intelligence in World War II
OSS: The Secret History of America's First Central Intelligence Agency
The Wolves at the Door: The True Story of America's Greatest Female Spy

ASIN: 0871138794

Book Description

A work of remarkable scholarship that moves with the swift pace of a John le Carre thriller, A Spy at the Heart of the Third Reich is a chilling addition to the literature of espionage. In 1943, a young official named Fritz Kolbe from the German foreign ministry arranged to meet with Allen Dulles, then an OSS officer in Switzerland and later the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. Kolbe had decided to betray his country. Over the next two years, Kolbe passed on countless valuable documents about German war efforts by tying the pages to his thigh and praying to avoid customs searches. He described the location of munitions factories and relayed diplomatic reports on Germany's intelligence operations and relations with other Axis nations like Romania and nominally neutral countries like Spain. Viewed by many Germans as a traitor, he was erased from the history books and, after Hitler's fall, his diplomatic career came to an end. Drawing on recently declassified materials at the National Archives in Washington and Kolbe's personal archives, Lucas Delattre has written an extraordinary tale of an ordinary man who knew the most valuable service he could provide his country was to betray it.

Customer Reviews:

The spy who was left out in the cold.......2006-03-20

This must be one of the most remarkable stories to come out of World War II, and Fritz Kolbe must be one of that war's most unique personalities. During the last two years of the war, and at the risk of his life, Fritz Kolbe brought to the Allies over 2600 secret documents from Hitler's Foreign Office in Berlin. As a result, at war's end he was regarded as "the prize intelligence source of the war." For all this, he asked nothing.

Kolbe was a minor official in the Foreign Office who had managed to maintain his position despite never having joined the Nazi Party. He came to detest the Nazi regime and, despite the inherent risks, resolved to do everything in his power to help bring it down. In early 1943, despite not being a party member, he managed to wangle a trip to Bern, Switzerland as a diplomatic courier. Once there, he attempted to contact the British secret service but they turned him away.

Kolbe then managed to contact the Bern office of the fledgling American Office of Strategic Services (OSS) - the forerunner of today CIA - which was headed by Allen Dulles. Kolbe brought with him about two hundred Nazi top secret documents. Dulles was somewhat uncertain, but decided to take a chance on Kolbe and gave him the cover name George Wood. From that time on, Kolbe provided Dulles with highly classified information regarding the third Reich, its plans, its weaponry, its manufacturing plants and their locations, damage to factories and other installations by allied aircraft, Germany's negotiations with other countries, and strategic information concerning the Japanese war machine. In addition, Kolbe's information helped identify German spies and/or their locations in Ireland, Ankara, and Africa.

But sadly, much of this information was never acted upon by the Allies. For some inexplicable reason the OSS office in Washington assigned his file to the counter-espionage service which spent most of its time trying to verify the authenticity of the source. Even more sadly, shortly before his death President Roosevelt mandated that no special consideration should be given to Germans who risked their lives to aid the Allied cause. Germany's surrender must be unconditional.

Thus the ultimate irony: It has been said that no good deed shall go unpunished. So, if Fritz Kolbe's heroic efforts to help bring down Adolph Hitler's Nazi Germany can be considered a good deed by mankind, then Kolbe certainly received his just reward. For at war's end, and with the newly established German Foreign Office largely staffed with ex-Nazi officials, Fritz Kolbe found himself blacklisted as a traitor and left out in the cold.

He had many friends in America's Office of Strategic Services (OSS), but despite the best efforts of his friend, Allen Dulles, who's reputation as a spy master Kolbe had almost single handedly created, Kolbe was never able to resume his career. Instead, he went from one low paying job to another until his death on February 16, 1971. This was a sad end for a forgotten hero who strangely enough might have wanted it that way.

Unforgettable Tale About An Unsung Hero of World War II.......2005-11-17

Until I had picked up Lucas Delattre's "A Spy at the Heart of the Third Reich: The Extraordinary Life of Fritz Kolbe, America's Most Important Spy in World War II", I had never heard before of this book's fascinating subject. Without question, he became an important source of information to the United States on the state of affairs in Nazi Germany towards the latter half of World War II. But still more fascinating is that he came "out of the cold", unannounced, and introduced himself to skeptical American and British intelligence operatives in Switzerland as a German foreign service employee willing to work alone against a diabolical, despotic regime. Delattre - and his English translator George A. Holoch, Jr. - have told a riveting tale in the best tradition of a Graham Greene or John Le Carre novel, but here, the truth is surely much stranger than fiction. I was especially intrigued with how well Kolbe had won over the Americans, especially Allen Dulles, the OSS station chief in Switzerland, and that he managed to provide - without any detection by his superiors in the foreign ministry or by the Gestapo - invaluable information on Nazi-occupied Europe and Japanese-occupied Asia. And I find it remarkable that Kolbe escaped detection by the Gestapo when quite a few of his friends and colleagues did not, and were executed eventually for their resistance against the Nazi dictatorship. It's a pity that this story had a bittersweet ending for Kolbe, who could not serve in the Federal Republic of Germany's foreign ministry due to the influence of former Nazis who objected to having a "traitor" working in their midst; much to Germany's credit, he has been remembered posthumously with a memorial room in the current Foreign Ministry office. I strongly recommend this book to anyone interested not only in World War II, but in events in Germany immediately after the war.

True but Incredible Story.......2005-06-03

It seems like the release of previously secret information from World War II will never end. This book is based on information from the OSS archives that was finally released in 2000. It tells a story that was simply unknown before.

Fritz Kolbe was a walk in. One day he walked in to the OSS office in Switzerland and offered to spy on Germany. Both the British and the Americans were very concerned that he was a double agent. Eventually though Allen Dulles, then head of the OSS in Switzerland took a chance with him.

Kolbe was a medium level officer in the German foreign office. He was not a Nazi and became disenchanted with the Nazi regime. All in all he passed some 2,600 secret documents to the OSS.

After the war Kolbe wanted to continut working for the German Foreign Office. But the Nazi officials who had by then re-entered the German government considered him a traitor and refused to employ him.

The CD is read by Michael Prichard, who has recorded some 430 full length books.

Tale of a Hero.......2005-05-25

This is a truly unforgettable biography of a German civil servant and diplomat who risked his life to spy for the allies during WWII.He was a member of the German diplomatic service, who had the courage (almost alone among his colleagues), to refuse to join the Nazi party. As the war went on, he was steadily promoted, ending up in a position in which he had access to top-secret documents. Driven by his conscience, he decided that he must help the allies, and this he did at the risk of his life, by smuggling documents to Switzerland. For his first trip across the German - Swiss frontier, he wrapped secret documents around his thighs, under his trousers! Discovery by customs agents would have led to his arrest and eventual execution.

When he first arrived in Zurich, he attempted to contact British and American spy organizations, but was treated by them with great suspicion, and considered a 'double agent'. Eventually he was able to gain the trust of Allen Dulles who acted as head US espionage in Switzerland during this period. Fritz Kolbe worked with Dulles for several years, during which he was able to transmit over 2,600 secret documents to the Dulles organization. From the outset, he astonished his American colleagues by refusing any and all payment for his dangerous work. As the war end approached, he even attempted to form a guerilla group in Berlin, but was dissuaded from this by his US handlers, who persuaded him that his work as a spy was too important for him to take on extra risks. When the war was over, he was unable to find employment in the German diplomatic service, because he was considered a traitor by the many ex-Nazis who had managed to re-enter German government service. He died of cancer in 1971.

Codename Tricycle: The True Story of the Second World War's Most Extraordinary Double Agent

Average customer rating:

Codename Tricycle: The True Story of the Second World War's Most Extraordinary Double Agent
Russell Miller
Manufacturer: Pimlico
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Book Description

A colourful portrait of a celebrated, glamorous and daring man who epitomized everything about the life of a spy — and was quite possibly the inspiration for James Bond.

A wealthy lawyer, debonair ladies’ man, consummate actor, and courageous gambler, Dusko Popov played the role of playboy among the top echelons of British society to become one of Germany’s most trusted spies. In fact, he was one of Britain’s most successful double agents and, some say, the inspiration for James Bond.

With full access to FBI and MI5 records, along with private family papers, his incredible adventures can now be told authoritatively for the first time. Recruited by the Abwehr in 1940, 27-year-old Popov immediately offered his services to the British. His code-name was Tricycle.

Throughout the war he fed the Germans with a constant stream of military “intelligence,” all vetted by MI5, and came to be viewed as their most important and reliable agent in Britain. But when he was ordered by the Abwehr to the United States to report on the defences at Pearl Harbor, J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the FBI, failed to heed his warnings, distrusting all spies and detesting Popov in particular whom he considered to be a “moral degenerate.”

OPERATORS: On the Streets with Britain's Most Secret Service (Pen & Sword Military Classics)

Average customer rating:

Very limited writing style
Great reading for the professional soldier!
Great book on 14 Intelligence company
14 INT

OPERATORS: On the Streets with Britain's Most Secret Service (Pen & Sword Military Classics)
James Rennie
Manufacturer: Pen and Sword
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Intelligence & Espionage | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Military Science | History | Subjects | Books

Law Enforcement | Criminal Law | Law | Subjects | Books

Ultimate Risk: SAS Contact Al Qaeda
First Into Action: A Dramatic Personal Account of Life in the SBS
Killer Elite: The Inside Story of America's Most Secret Special Operations Team
Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10
32 Battalion: The Inside Story of South Africa's Elite Fighting Unit

ASIN: 1844150992

Book Description

Few outside the security services have heard of 14 Company. As deadly as the SAS yet more secret, the Operators of 14 Company are Britain's most effective weapon against international terrorism. For every bomb that goes off 14 Company prevent twelve. The selection process is the most physically, intellectually and emotionally demanding anywhere in the world. Trained to operate under cover, Operators have at their disposal an arsenal of techniques and weapons unmatched by any other UK government or military agency. This is the true story of one Operator and of some of the most hair-raising military operations ever conducted on the streets of Britain.

Customer Reviews:

Very limited writing style.......2007-08-24

It is really hard to find the right words for this work that reads like it was written by an adolescent with a huge inferiority complex describing one of those violent video games. If you are one of those military blockheads you might find this book entertaining, but in all consequence it has no value when it comes to add to the aspects of the Irish War. The author's writing abilities are simply too limited. If this book is really a reflection on the workings of "Britain's Most Secret Service" then I have to worry about their abilities to handle such complex tasks as fighting terrorists.

Great reading for the professional soldier!.......2006-08-21

What I like about this book is its apparent honesty. The author does not over inflate his achievements. If he were lying, the book would be more blood and guts and" I wuz there." He is careful to make clear that he was not personally involved in some of the incidents he relates. I found the details about the selection process and later operational skills to be fascinating.

What was also valuable is that you see that the selection process was not just a bunch of crap, but was actually required for the job to be done. His treatment of weapons and capabilities is straightforward and accurate.

The book also touches on the sometimes jealousy and cooperation between Company 14 and the SAS.

(There is the possibility that some facts were altered for security purposes. The book was vetted by the Ministry of Defense.)

Any young troop contemplating some type of special forces selection process would to well to read this book (there are others) to see what kind of head games you are in for.

Great book on 14 Intelligence company.......2003-11-17

A great book concerning details about training, deployment and surveillance techniques of the 14 Company. These guys are by far the most competent anti-terrorism force out there (when it comes to surveillance).

14 INT.......2002-11-08

An excellent look at a military unit that is realitivly unknown and the covert operations that have taken place in Northern Ireland. Anyone interested in the conflict in Northern I reland or the British Army should read this book.

The Einstein File: J. Edgar Hoover's Secret War Against the World's Most Famous Scientist

Average customer rating:

Shockingly Relevant Today
More than a theory
Unusual suspects

The Einstein File: J. Edgar Hoover's Secret War Against the World's Most Famous Scientist
Fred Jerome
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

History & Theory | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

U.S. | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | History & Philosophy | Science | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Science | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Einstein on Race And Racism
Einstein and Religion: Physics and Theology
J. Edgar Hoover: The Man and the Secrets
Albert Einstein: A Biography
Einstein - Peace Now!: Visions and Ideas

ASIN: 0312316097

Amazon.com

From 1933 until 1955, the Federal Bureau of Investigation compiled a 2,000-page file on Albert Einstein, hoping to "destroy" his immense stature by linking him to Soviet espionage activities. At one point, not long before the scientist's death, a serious attempt was made to have him deported. This alarming campaign--responsible in large part for Einstein's exclusion from the Manhattan Project--is the subject of Fred Jerome's The Einstein File. Einstein's disloyalty, in the FBI's view, was clearly evidenced by his adamant political stances. He was a socialist, a pacifist (though he advocated war with Germany), and an outspoken foe of McCarthyism, nuclear war, and racism. Jerome's skillful narrative weaves the file's hateful (and often ludicrously inaccurate) entries with American political history, creating an invaluable context for both Einstein's views and the FBI's actions. Further, Jerome points to the more recent "sanitizing" of Einstein, from angry activist to "genial, absent-minded professor." This is a fascinating, compelling tale, one that reads like the strangest of fictions. --H. O'Billovich

Book Description

From the legendary physicist's arrival in America in 1933 until his death in 1955, Hoover's FBI-with help from several other federal agencies-made an all-out attempt to undermine Albert Einstein's influence and destroy his prestige. In this fascinating book, Fred Jerome tells the story of that smear campaign, and the reasons behind it-Einstein's convictions as a pacifist, socialist, internationalist, and denouncer of racism. Deftly weaving information from Einstein's recently declassified 2,000-plus-page FBI file with historical details of the period, The Einstein File offers the first detailed picture of Einstein's moral and political views, as well as a damning portrait of those who tried to punish him for them.

Customer Reviews:

Shockingly Relevant Today.......2006-02-10

This is a must read book for many reasons. We have allowed J. Edgar Hoover and Joseph McCarthy's abuses of power to slip quietly into fuzzy memory. We have failed to learn from history and are now condemned to repeat it.

Einstein emerges in this book as far more than a smart mathematician. He was a good and wise man. That so much of our government's power was engaged in an effort to discredit him is frightening.

Einstein experienced the Nazi's rise to power first hand. He could see the similarities between their anti-Semitism and our own racism. He had seen the Nazis attack the Communists and quash dissent. Einstein was a long time Pacifist, but he supported the war against the Nazis, even to the point of suggesting to FDR that we develop the Atomic Bomb before Hitler could.

Einstein was never a Communist. He valued his freedom of thought and expression too much. He saw how dangerous narrow nationalism could be and that it could threaten democracy. Einstein and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt were strong supporters of the United Nations and Human Rights. This earned both extensive FBI files, along with Martin Luther King Jr., whose Civil Rights efforts were also seen as a threat by Hoover.

After World War II, Nazis were eagerly embraced as anti-Communists and recruited into the growing "intelligence community". Einstein, an avowed Socialist, was feared to be, if not actually "Red" at least "Pink", and not to be trusted. If he had not been so well known and loved, he would surely have been stripped of his citizenship and deported. Hoover certainly tried. Fortunately for Einstein, there was no real evidence at all against him, just allegations from completely unreliable sources, innuendo and irrational fear.

Today, the flames of irrational fear are again being fanned in our country. Fear is again being used to justify injustice and erode our civil liberties. Everyone should read this book, and take it as a warning.

More than a theory.......2002-11-11

The Einstein File by Fred Jerome, quickly dispels the poplar image
of Albert Einstein as an absentminded, head-in-the-clouds-genius.

Though Einstein is arguably the most widely covered, continuing
science story in history and is most noted for his scientific
theories that transformed our view of the universe. This book
chronicles the life of an Einstein that the masses knew nothing
about. An Einstein described as a troublemaker, an agitator, a
fervent pacifist, a socialist, and an open critic of racism.

Einstein arrived in the United States in 1933, the year of
the Nazi's ascent to power in Germany, and became the focus of
J. Edgar Hoover's FBI. And by any means necessary the FBI amassed
a 'file cabinet' of information on him. Fred Jerome stumbled on
documents that addressed Einstein as a Spy and a Kidnap Plotter.
And a dossier where Jerome discovered the political dimension of
Albert Einstein's life and his intense commitment to social justice.

Jerome says when he realized how much had not been told to us about
the life of the 'Man of the Century', he felt as though he had been
robbed. This is not another biography of Einstein, some two hundred
have already been written. It is a window opened by the FBI on the
nature of Einstein's politics, the depth of his public involvement,
and the generosity of his endorsements of organizations he supported.
And it is this activism that made Hoover's Bureau consider Einstein

dangerous. This book reveals information that makes one think the
history we know is sanitized, and what we don't know is at times
appalling. It talks of a 'list' maintained by the FBI on celebrities,
political figures and anyone thought to have affiliatiions with the
Communist Party. It underscores the dangers that can arise, and the
rule of law that exists in times of obsession with national security.
And it creates questions on where the line should be drawn on the issue
of an invasion of privacy. This one will make you take a seat.

Reviewed by aNN Brown

Unusual suspects.......2002-07-15

Einstein was a troublemaker, the author informs us at the beginning of this book detailing, armed with the 1800 pages of files released by the FOIA, with Hoover's Albert-paranoia in action, aimed at the great scientist, especially in the years of the Red Scare, McCarthyism, and the Cold War. The public image of the greatest scientist of the twentieth century has been carefully manicured, but behind the teddy bear was a determined activist on many fronts, who fell afoul of not only the Nazis, but of the FBI. Einstein's valiant stands on social justice, racism, antisemitism, war, peace, and the Bomb barely enter public consciousness through the layers of the myth. The record of Hoover's manipulations and skullduggeries is almost pathetic in its pickiun character, next also to its bungling and misinformation. It is, for example, discouraging to watch how Einstein is deprived of security clearance, lest a man with such a reputation and global popularity be, we suspect the motive, able to influence or speak out from the inside on the use of the first atom bomb. The portrait left of the reactionary and racist Hoover at the head of a critical institution pursuing this biased and incomprehending agenda is nothing less than appalling. The portrait of Einstein's deep social concerns (read a triffle 'leftist') in action is the real man, please.

Operation Splinter Factor The untold story of America's most secret Cold War intelligence operation (run by Allen W. Dulles)

Average customer rating:

Operation Splinter Factor The untold story of America's most secret Cold War intelligence operation (run by Allen W. Dulles)
Stewart Steven
Manufacturer: J.B. Lippincott Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000J0L4LU

The Secrets of D-Day: A Masterful History of One of the Most Important Days of the 20th Century

Average customer rating:

The Secrets of D-Day: A Masterful History of One of the Most Important Days of the 20th Century
Larry Collins
Manufacturer: Phoenix Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Book Description

The battle known as D-Day, the Allied Armies invasion of France on June 6, 1944 has been remembered in hundreds of books, articles and films. D-Day marked the true turning point in the war against the German Reich and the effort to liberate Europe from their occupation. Now, in

Operation Garbo: The Personal Story of the Most Successful Double Agent of World War II

Average customer rating:

Operation Garbo: The Personal Story of the Most Successful Double Agent of World War II
Juan Pujol , and Nigel West
Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

Garbo: The Spy who Saved D-Day
The Double-Cross System: The Incredible True Story of How Nazi Spies Were Turned into Double Agents
Nightmover: How Aldrich Ames Sold the CIA to the KGB for $4.6 Million
The Spies Who Never Were: The True Story of the Nazi Spies Who Were Actually Allied Double Agents
The Deceivers: Allied Military Deception in the Second World War

ASIN: 0394547772
Release Date: 1986-08-12

Skorzeny's Special Missions: The Memoirs of "The Most Dangerous Man in Europe"

Average customer rating:

Pretty good for an Autobiography

Skorzeny's Special Missions: The Memoirs of "The Most Dangerous Man in Europe"
Otto Skorzeny
Manufacturer: Greenhill Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Military & Spies | Professionals & Academics | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Aviation | Military | History | Subjects | Books

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

My Commando Operations: The Memoirs of Hitler's Most Daring Commando (Schiffer Military History)
Hitler's Raid to Save Mussolini: The Most Infamous Commando Operation of World War II
HITLER'S GLADIATOR: The Life and Wars of Panzer Army Commander Sepp Dietrich
The Brandenburger Commandos: Germany's Elite Warrior Spies in World War II (Stackpole Military History Series) (Stackpole Military History Series)
Panzer Leader

ASIN: 1853676845

Book Description

Otto Skorzeny, Germany's top commando in World War II, is one of the most famous men in the history of special forces. His extraordinary wartime career was one of high risk and adventure and in this book he tells the full story. Skorzeny quickly proved his worth in Yugoslavia and then Russia. In 1942 he was awarded the Iron Cross, and in April 1943 he was promoted to captain and named 'Chief of Germany's Special Troops, Existing or to be Created in the Future'. When Mussolini was imprisoned in Italy in 1943, it was Skorzeny who successfully led the daring glider rescue, winning the Knight's Cross and promotion as a result. Skorzeny's talents were brought into play again when he was sent to Budapest to stop the Hungarian regent Admiral Horthy from signing a peace with Stalin in 1944. Now dubbed 'the most dangerous man in Europe' by the Allies he was awarded the German Cross in Gold. A few months later he took a critical role in the Ardennes offensive with a controversial plan to raise a brigade disguised as Americans with captured Sherman tanks. His captured colleagues spread a false rumor that he was planning to assassinate Eisenhower, who was consequently confined to his headquarters for weeks. Skorzeny's memoirs vividly depict commando action and are a key addition to special forces literature.

Customer Reviews:

Pretty good for an Autobiography.......2007-01-10

A decent account of WWII seen through the eyes of the elite Spec Ops German commander. A few bits are lost here and there with the translastion from German to English but overall the feel of the book is kept pretty close to the original. The account begins with the early life of Skorzeny and is pretty light until he begins the accounts of his military career. He is very detailed and his antidotes are fairly amusing. He goes into great detail of the raid to free Mussolini, his challenges to raise a special force inside the German Army, his exploits in dealing with the Hungarian government, his plans during Ardennes offensive, and his captivity after the war. His exploits are very factually presented and although history tells of his gigantic ego he seems to have it in check throughout the book. He does not toot his own horn much but does give the credit where credit deserves: to his men and subcommanders. Those who are interested in the workings of a Spec Ops operational commander should read this book. It is not filled with an inkling of Nazi propaganda or rhetoric. It is an account of what a German Officer did during the war. It appears he did like Hitler but there also seems to be a slight undertone that the German High command messed up the war, although he does not specifically state that. It is interesting to read his accounts of dealing with the German High Command and Hitler himself and it does show a more strategic and tactical side of the war. Sadly the book ends with his escape from prison after the Nuremberg trials,and does not go into any of his underground activities and post war exploits (to include a stint working for Eva Peron in Argentina!) nor does it mention his involvement with "Der Spinne" or ODESSA. I was reluctant to read this book in fear that is might contain pro-nazi viewpoints and/or support for the Holocaust but was pleasently suprised that it was what it was, an autobiography. I would give it 4 stars but parts were difficult to understand (and had to be re-read even for a post-college level reader) and the translations lacking in rhythm in some areas. I recommend this for Spec Ops soldiers, WW II History buffs, and those interested in operational strategy. I do not recommend this for High School Students, casual College History students, or those wishing to read about World War II. This is a very specific account of very small bits of the War told through the skewed eyes of a German Officer who had his microscope solidly fixed on only one operational area: Special Warfare.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books