-
The Art of Intelligence
- Lessons from a Life in the CIA's Clandestine Service
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 12 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Biographies & Memoirs, Military & War
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $31.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Craft of Intelligence
- America's Legendary Spy Master on the Fundamentals of Intelligence Gathering for a Free World
- By: Allen W. Dulles
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This classic of spycraft is based on Allen Dulles's incomparable experience as a diplomat, international lawyer, and America's premier intelligence officer. Dulles was a high-ranking officer of the CIA's predecessor - the Office of Strategic Services - and was present at the inception of the CIA, where he served eight of his 10 years there as director. Here he sums up what he learned about intelligence from nearly a half-century of experience in foreign affairs.
-
-
Absorbing
- By Jean on 12-14-17
By: Allen W. Dulles
-
Psychology of Intelligence Analysis
- By: Richards J. Heuer Jr.
- Narrated by: Scott R. Pollak
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Psychology of Intelligence Analysis has been required reading for intelligence officers studying the art and science of intelligence analysis for decades. Richards Heuer, Jr. discusses in the audiobook how fundamental limitations in human mental processes can prompt people to jump to conclusions and employ other simplifying strategies that lead to predictably faulty judgments known as cognitive biases.
-
-
Good read for beginners
- By Medimarc on 05-11-22
-
The Recruiter
- Spying and the Lost Art of American Intelligence
- By: Douglas London
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 17 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This revealing memoir from a 34-year veteran of the CIA who worked as a case officer and recruiter of foreign agents before and after 9/11 provides an invaluable perspective on the state of modern spy craft, how the CIA has developed, and how it must continue to evolve.
-
-
What a whiner
- By Language Lover on 02-26-22
By: Douglas London
-
First In
- An Insider’s Account of How the CIA Spearheaded the War on Terror in Afghanistan
- By: Gary C. Schroen
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
While America held its breath in the days immediately following 9/11, a small but determined group of CIA agents covertly began to change history. This is the riveting first-person account of the treacherous top-secret mission inside Afghanistan to set the stage for the defeat of the Taliban and launch the war on terror. As thrilling as any novel, First In is a uniquely intimate look at a mission that began the US retaliation against terrorism - and reclaimed the country of Afghanistan for its people.
-
-
Too little too late
- By Aaron G. on 12-09-21
By: Gary C. Schroen
-
The Main Enemy
- The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB
- By: Milton Bearden, James Risen
- Narrated by: Christopher Lane
- Length: 19 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A landmark collaboration between a thirty-year veteran of the CIA and a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, The Main Enemy is the inside story of the CIA-KGB spy wars, told through the actions of the men who fought them. Based on hundreds of interviews with operatives from both sides, The Main Enemy puts us inside the heads of CIA officers as they dodge surveillance and walk into violent ambushes in Moscow. This is the story of the generation of spies who came of age in the shadow of the Cuban missile crisis and rose to run the CIA and KGB in the last days of the Cold War.
-
-
Couldn’t stop listening
- By John on 08-28-19
By: Milton Bearden, and others
-
Life Undercover
- Coming of Age in the CIA
- By: Amaryllis Fox
- Narrated by: Amaryllis Fox
- Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Amaryllis Fox's riveting memoir tells the story of her 10 years in the most elite clandestine ops unit of the CIA, hunting the world's most dangerous terrorists in 16 countries while marrying and giving birth to a daughter. Life Undercover is exhilarating, intimate, fiercely intelligent - an impossible-to-pause record of an extraordinary life, and of Amaryllis Fox's astonishing courage and passion.
-
-
Book of the year...
- By Mr Dangerous on 10-16-19
By: Amaryllis Fox
-
The Craft of Intelligence
- America's Legendary Spy Master on the Fundamentals of Intelligence Gathering for a Free World
- By: Allen W. Dulles
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This classic of spycraft is based on Allen Dulles's incomparable experience as a diplomat, international lawyer, and America's premier intelligence officer. Dulles was a high-ranking officer of the CIA's predecessor - the Office of Strategic Services - and was present at the inception of the CIA, where he served eight of his 10 years there as director. Here he sums up what he learned about intelligence from nearly a half-century of experience in foreign affairs.
-
-
Absorbing
- By Jean on 12-14-17
By: Allen W. Dulles
-
Psychology of Intelligence Analysis
- By: Richards J. Heuer Jr.
- Narrated by: Scott R. Pollak
- Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Psychology of Intelligence Analysis has been required reading for intelligence officers studying the art and science of intelligence analysis for decades. Richards Heuer, Jr. discusses in the audiobook how fundamental limitations in human mental processes can prompt people to jump to conclusions and employ other simplifying strategies that lead to predictably faulty judgments known as cognitive biases.
-
-
Good read for beginners
- By Medimarc on 05-11-22
-
The Recruiter
- Spying and the Lost Art of American Intelligence
- By: Douglas London
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 17 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This revealing memoir from a 34-year veteran of the CIA who worked as a case officer and recruiter of foreign agents before and after 9/11 provides an invaluable perspective on the state of modern spy craft, how the CIA has developed, and how it must continue to evolve.
-
-
What a whiner
- By Language Lover on 02-26-22
By: Douglas London
-
First In
- An Insider’s Account of How the CIA Spearheaded the War on Terror in Afghanistan
- By: Gary C. Schroen
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
While America held its breath in the days immediately following 9/11, a small but determined group of CIA agents covertly began to change history. This is the riveting first-person account of the treacherous top-secret mission inside Afghanistan to set the stage for the defeat of the Taliban and launch the war on terror. As thrilling as any novel, First In is a uniquely intimate look at a mission that began the US retaliation against terrorism - and reclaimed the country of Afghanistan for its people.
-
-
Too little too late
- By Aaron G. on 12-09-21
By: Gary C. Schroen
-
The Main Enemy
- The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown with the KGB
- By: Milton Bearden, James Risen
- Narrated by: Christopher Lane
- Length: 19 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A landmark collaboration between a thirty-year veteran of the CIA and a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, The Main Enemy is the inside story of the CIA-KGB spy wars, told through the actions of the men who fought them. Based on hundreds of interviews with operatives from both sides, The Main Enemy puts us inside the heads of CIA officers as they dodge surveillance and walk into violent ambushes in Moscow. This is the story of the generation of spies who came of age in the shadow of the Cuban missile crisis and rose to run the CIA and KGB in the last days of the Cold War.
-
-
Couldn’t stop listening
- By John on 08-28-19
By: Milton Bearden, and others
-
Life Undercover
- Coming of Age in the CIA
- By: Amaryllis Fox
- Narrated by: Amaryllis Fox
- Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Amaryllis Fox's riveting memoir tells the story of her 10 years in the most elite clandestine ops unit of the CIA, hunting the world's most dangerous terrorists in 16 countries while marrying and giving birth to a daughter. Life Undercover is exhilarating, intimate, fiercely intelligent - an impossible-to-pause record of an extraordinary life, and of Amaryllis Fox's astonishing courage and passion.
-
-
Book of the year...
- By Mr Dangerous on 10-16-19
By: Amaryllis Fox
-
Good Hunting
- An American Spymaster's Story
- By: Jack Devine
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 12 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Good Hunting: An American Spymaster's Story is the spellbinding memoir of Devine's time in the CIA, where he served for more than 30 years, rising to become the acting deputy director of operations, responsible for all of the agency's spying operations. This is a story of intrigue and high-stakes maneuvering - all the more gripping when the fate of our geopolitical order hangs in the balance. But this audiobook also sounds a warning to our nation's decision makers.
-
-
Fascinating, An education on spying
- By Anthony on 12-13-15
By: Jack Devine
-
Ghost Wars
- The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001
- By: Steve Coll
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 26 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The explosive first-hand account of America's secret history in Afghanistan. With the publication of Ghost Wars, Steve Coll became not only a Pulitzer Prize winner, but also the expert on the rise of the Taliban, the emergence of Bin Laden, and the secret efforts by CIA officers and their agents to capture or kill Bin Laden in Afghanistan after 1998.
-
-
An Exceptional Accomplishment
- By Joe on 11-08-13
By: Steve Coll
-
The Billion Dollar Spy
- A True Story of Cold War Espionage and Betrayal
- By: David E. Hoffman
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
While getting into his car on the evening of February 16, 1978, the chief of the CIA's Moscow station was handed an envelope by an unknown Russian. Its contents stunned the Americans: details of top-secret Soviet research and development in military technology that was totally unknown to the United States.
-
-
Compelling as historical thriller, character study
- By Mr. Pointy on 08-25-15
By: David E. Hoffman
-
Legacy of Ashes
- The History of the CIA
- By: Tim Weiner
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 21 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is the book the CIA does not want you to read. For the last 60 years, the CIA has maintained a formidable reputation in spite of its terrible record, never disclosing its blunders to the American public. It spun its own truth to the nation while reality lay buried in classified archives. Now, Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter Tim Weiner offers a stunning indictment of the CIA, a deeply flawed organization that has never deserved America's confidence.
-
-
Lots of facts, but also a sprinkling of opinion
- By Eugene on 05-29-11
By: Tim Weiner
-
Spycraft
- The Secret History of the CIA's Spytechs from Communism to Al-Qaeda
- By: Robert Wallace, Henry Robert Schelsinger
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 19 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Now, in the first book ever written about this ultrasecretive department, the former director of OTS teams up with an internationally renowned intelligence historian to give listeners an unprecedented look at the devices and operations deemed "inappropriate for public disclosure" by the CIA just two years ago.
-
-
Unique, informative history of the CIA
- By Richard on 07-29-08
By: Robert Wallace, and others
-
To Catch a Spy
- The Art of Counterintelligence
- By: James M. Olson
- Narrated by: John McLain
- Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In To Catch a Spy: The Art of Counterintelligence, James M. Olson, former chief of CIA counterintelligence, offers a wake-up call for the American public and also a guide for how our country can do a better job of protecting its national security and trade secrets. Olson takes the listener into the arcane world of counterintelligence as he lived it during his 30-year career in the CIA.
-
-
Horrible Narrator
- By NN on 10-01-19
By: James M. Olson
-
Fair Play
- The Moral Dilemmas of Spying
- By: James M. Olson
- Narrated by: Joel Richards
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Revolutionary War officer Nathan Hale, one of America's first spies, said, "Any kind of service necessary to the public good becomes honorable by being necessary." A statue of Hale stands outside CIA headquarters, and the agency often cites his statement as one of its guiding principles. But who decides what is necessary for the public good, and is it really true that any kind of service is permissible for the public good? These questions are at the heart of James M. Olson's book, Fair Play: The Moral Dilemmas of Spying.
-
-
A well researched and worth a listen
- By Jeremy on 12-18-18
By: James M. Olson
-
Directorate S
- The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan
- By: Steve Coll
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 28 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Resuming the narrative of his Pulitzer Prize-winning Ghost Wars, best-selling author Steve Coll tells for the first time the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11.
-
-
All the detail you could want
- By Louis Macareo on 03-06-18
By: Steve Coll
-
Surprise, Kill, Vanish
- The Secret History of CIA Paramilitary Armies, Operators, and Assassins
- By: Annie Jacobsen
- Narrated by: Annie Jacobsen
- Length: 19 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From Pulitzer Prize finalist Annie Jacobsen, the untold story of the CIA's secret paramilitary units.
-
-
Small inaccuracies
- By jenny hankins on 07-23-19
By: Annie Jacobsen
-
The Moscow Rules
- The Secret CIA Tactics That Helped America Win the Cold War
- By: Jonna Mendez, Antonio J. J. Mendez
- Narrated by: Wilson Bethel
- Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Antonio Mendez and his future wife, Jonna, were CIA operatives working to spy on Moscow in the late 1970s, at one of the most dangerous moments in the Cold War. Soviets kept files on all foreigners, studied their patterns, tapped their phones, and even planted listening devices within the US embassy. In short, intelligence work was effectively impossible. The Soviet threat loomed larger than ever. The Moscow Rules tells the story of the intelligence breakthroughs that turned the odds in America's favor.
-
-
Great for enthusiasts
- By Michael on 05-24-19
By: Jonna Mendez, and others
-
American Spy
- Wry Reflections on My Life in the CIA
- By: H. K. Roy
- Narrated by: Christopher Lane
- Length: 9 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This candid and darkly witty memoir recounts an exhilarating life - and a few close brushes with death. With remarkable sangfroid and a humorist's eye for absurdity, H. K. Roy describes his many strange and risky exploits in his long career with the CIA. Whether he was pursuing Soviet and Cuban spies, running "denied area" operations in Eastern Europe, hunting Bosnian War criminals, or providing actionable intelligence to US government and coalition forces in Iraq, Roy usually found himself at the right place at the right time.
-
-
To political
- By Amazon Customer on 11-29-19
By: H. K. Roy
-
Black Flags
- The Rise of ISIS
- By: Joby Warrick
- Narrated by: Sunil Malhotra
- Length: 13 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Pulitzer Prize, General nonfiction, 2016. When Jordan granted amnesty to a group of political prisoners in 1999, it little realized that among them was Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a terrorist mastermind and soon the architect of an Islamist movement bent on dominating the Middle East. In Black Flags, an unprecedented account of the rise of ISIS, Joby Warrick shows how the zeal of this one man and the strategic mistakes of Presidents Bush and Obama led to the banner of ISIS being raised over huge swaths of Syria and Iraq.
-
-
So much learned
- By mike flavin on 02-11-16
By: Joby Warrick
Publisher's Summary
A legendary CIA spy and counterterrorism expert tells the spellbinding story of his high-risk, action-packed career while illustrating the growing importance of America's intelligence officers and their secret missions.
For a crucial period, Henry Crumpton led the CIA's global covert operations against America's terrorist enemies, including al Qaeda. In the days after 9/11, the CIA tasked Crumpton to organize and lead the Afghanistan campaign. With Crumpton's strategic initiative and bold leadership, from the battlefield to the Oval Office, U.S. and Afghan allies routed al Qaeda and the Taliban in less than 90 days after the Twin Towers fell. At the height of combat against the Taliban in late 2001, there were fewer than 500 Americans on the ground in Afghanistan, a dynamic blend of CIA and Special Forces. The campaign changed the way America wages war. This book will change the way America views the CIA.
The Art of Intelligence draws from the full arc of Crumpton's espionage and covert action exploits to explain what America's spies do and why their service is more valuable than ever. From his early years in Africa, where he recruited and ran sources, from loathsome criminals to heroic warriors; to his liaison assignment at the FBI, the CIA's Counterterrorism Center, the development of the UAV Predator program, and the Afghanistan war; to his later work running all CIA clandestine operations inside the United States, he employs enthralling storytelling to teach important lessons about national security, but also about duty, honor, and love of country.
No book like The Art of Intelligence has ever been written - not with Crumpton's unique perspective, in a time when America faced such grave and uncertain risk. It is an epic, sure to be a classic in the annals of espionage and war.
More from the same
Narrator
What listeners say about The Art of Intelligence
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Yawhtevr
- 08-01-12
A biographical Text Book.
Is there anything you would change about this book?
The organization. He organizes it in chronological order in parts, intelligence collection methods in others, and in other various ways. It makes allows for too many rapid departures and side stories.
How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?
Break it out into clear sections. Only occasionally drift off subject. Do not use the side story as a vehicle to lengthen the book and drive home obvious points. Its a book on Intelligence for the love of Pete! People interested in reading this subject probably have at least the basics down.
Did David Colacci do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?
Only one Character so hard to say. But he was very dry.
Did The Art of Intelligence inspire you to do anything?
I wanted to know more about some of the key individuals and events talked about. So i wiki'd them. I guess that counts.
Any additional comments?
Though it is informative, it is like reading a text book. 70% of the information you already know or have been exposed to. you have to wade through the personal and political agenda of the author to get at some of the better bits of info though.
16 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anne
- 05-20-12
Looking for a place in History?
Interesting but not fascinating. This book contains details of the CIA's involvement in various world events but these are muddied by the author's use of acronyms and un-necessary descriptions of the physical attributes of his characters. It would have been much more rewarding to learn more about their interactions with others and less about whether they could 'growl, spit' etc. That the author was flattered by the fact that George W. Bush put his hand on his back is, perhaps, understandable but self-aggrandizing and his recall of conversations had with various people is either a result of perfect recall or that they were all recorded - both of which are unlikely. Still, there are lessons to be learned and the author points out some of these very clearly. It is to be hoped that politicians and public servants have taken note and action.
24 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Joe Bloggs
- 07-23-16
Like a Baked Potato - plain without anything else
Any additional comments?
Very interesting overall, but the lack of specific details makes the book bland as hell. He basically covers his career and the highlights through the years. We get a pseudo inside look at the CIA and intelligence, but the story continually suffers from a lack of specificity. I understand that anything like this has to be scrubbed of details to protect the innocent, but that doesn't mean it makes for good reading.
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Rex Michael Dillon
- 04-03-16
Mediocre Grandstanding
Sadly, the portion at the beginning, when he speaks of his time in Africa is so vague, it might as well be edited out. The portion covering Afghanistan adds no new insights. Instead of this book, read/listen to Ghost Wars or Taliban.
The portion regarding Silicon Valley and US universities is as vague as the segment on Africa. I would not recommend the time commitment of this book.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Edo
- 07-29-15
A Look Behind the Curtain of Today's Intelligence System
This book provides an interesting and compelling look at what happens in the CIA's world on covert intelligence without compromising the safety & security of those who continue to serve our nation. The perspective of the author is quite unique and he describes how decisions are made and what the Company did to respond to Al Qaeda before and after 9/11. He points out the same fault in the U.S. approach to foreign policy that Charlie Wilson has in the past--no matter how well we fight the battle, we always seem to screw up the end game. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in int'l relations, espionage, politics, and/or the CIA. It's well worth listening to and the reading progresses quickly and smoothly.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- H. de Gyor
- 06-06-12
Insider perspective on the modern world of intel
What did you love best about The Art of Intelligence?
An insider perspective of the world of intelligence and modern warfare as they hunt for the most wanted terrorists. Crumpton pinpoints the differences between multiple agencies he collaborated with over the years from education, technology, tradecraft, protocol, dealing with politics, decision making as well as working with the private sector.
What did you like best about this story?
An insider perspective of the world of intelligence and modern warfare. The reasons behind introducing drones and their evolution into effective predators is described in great detail. Fascinating look into use of data to improve decision making. The story is surprisingly revealing.
What about David Colacci’s performance did you like?
The narration was direct and purposeful, but not droning.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
There were some beautiful uses of data described. The collaboration between government agencies described is awe inspiring. There is some parts of prayer and deep patriotic feelings by the author.
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- LMB
- 02-11-13
It can stay Clandestine
Could only get 1/3 through this. Just nothing to keep my attention, and I really tried. No suspense. No enlightenment. Very slightly interesting in the beginning to hear about the history of the CIA. Nice to hear it from his voice.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- C
- 03-05-19
GREAT
Some books just bring you in and you just keep on listening to enjoy it thoroughly. Some books just bring you in and you just keep on listening to enjoy it thoroughly
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Avihu
- 11-20-17
not literature
Autobiography of a CIA guy. Not much to learn on Intelligence. The title is in a way misleading
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
- Catholic hermit
- 07-21-17
Excellent!!!!
This is a great book if you are interested in the CIA and their mission in the early days of the war on Al Qaeda.
1 person found this helpful