The Good Spy

New York Times Bestseller A Washington Post Notable Book A Christian Science Monitor Top Ten Book, 2014 New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice Entertainment Weekly's Best Spy Book of 2014 A Daily Beast Best Biography of 2014 An Apple Top 10 Biography of 2014 “A rich nuanced portrait of a man who, in the CIA's term, had a high tolerance for ambiguity... One of the best accounts we have of how espionage really works .” —Mark Mazzetti, The New York Times Book Review “Cool and authoritative… The book’s understated pleasures come from reading a pro writing about a pro. Mr. Bird has a dry style; watching him compose a book is like watching a robin build a nest. Twig is entwined with twig until a sturdy edifice is constructed. No flourishes are required …. Mr. Bird’s style is ideal for his subject.” —Dwight Garner, The New York Times “A well-researched, engagingly presented biography... The Good Spy is a fascinating book that sheds much-needed light on one of the murkier corners of CIA—and Middle Eastern—history .” —Max Boot, Wall Street Journal “ Full of great morsels and details … Bird has found in Ames a wonderful new subject…. The Good Spy succeeds on the basis of Bird’s considerable research skills, his interviews with intelligence officials, his access to Ames’s letters home and, above all, his ability to spot and put together an engrossing biography. ” – Washington Post “Bird captures the acrid taste of regional politics and offers a perceptive portrayal of the internal workings and interplay of personalities within the CIA at the time… An enthralling read.” – Houston Chronicle “[ Bird] spent years researching this terrific biography of one of America’s most important covert operatives. It was worth every minute .” –Seattle Times “Engrossing… This absorbing book suggests that even the best of intentions, and the best of spies, aren’t enough to bridge the chasms in the Middle East.” —Los Angeles Times “ Riveting…[Bird] relates fascinating details (drawn from interviews with some 30 retired CIA and Mossad officers) about the culture and practices of the agency, including the life-and-death implications of designating an individual as either a ‘source;’ a ‘recruit’ or an ‘asset.’” – San Francisco Gate “With its pacy narrative, exotic locales and colourful cast of CIA and Mossad agents, Palestinian and Iranian revolutionaries, Lebanese operators and even a winner of the Miss Universe contest, the book has all the ingredients of a first-class thriller . Kai Bird writes well enough to be a novelist, too, but his sentences have the additional virtue of being true.” – Times Literary Supplement “In his riveting, illuminating account of Ames' life and ultimate death in the 1983 embassy bombing in Beirut, Bird pulls back the thick black curtain on the world of clandestine intelligence affairs — a world that turns out to be more blazer-and-pen than cloak-and-dagger, though no less engrossing — to tell the story of one individual's good work in a not-so-good system. A ” – Entertainment Weekly “One of the best nonfiction books ever written about the West’s involvement in the Arab world.” —The Spectator (UK) “All of this is engrossing for those fascinated by the machinations of the people and politics of the Middle East…But this book should appeal to a wider audience. It underlines the need for intelligence-gathering by humans as well as by machines, and illustrates the gap between spying and policy.” – The Economist One of 2014's best books so far. “A lucid, thorough, fascinating biography.” – TIME.com “It is a reflection of the drama of this patch of history as well as Bird’s skill in rendering it that the book is as compelling a read as most spy novels.” – National Interest “ Kai Bird has written a riveting biography… This intriguing book shares many exciting exploits of Ames’ life as a spy, but most captivating was his poignant relationship with Ali Hassan Salameh.” –Jewish Journal (Massachusetts) “Painstakingly researched...In addition to being an admiring biography of a uniquely gifted CIA operative, The Good Spy reminds us of those long-ago days when some sort of resolution was considered even a remote possibility.” – Highbrow Magazine “More exciting than le Carré’s George Smiley or Fleming’s James Bond, Bird recreates the life of CIA superspy Robert Ames… Bird’s meticulous account of Ames’s career amid an ongoing Mideast climate of caution and suspicion is one of the best books on the American intelligence community.” —Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) “A moving biography within a balanced presentation of the complex diplomacy over the Palestinian quest for statehood and Israeli need for security.” —Library Journal (Starred Review) “A poignant tribute to a CIA Middle East operative who helped get the Palestinians and Israelis to talk to each other—and died for it.” —Kirkus Reviews “Kai Bird has produced a compelling and complex narrative that must be read on many levels—including as a detailed account of the