The Good Spy

The Life and Death of Robert Ames

De: Kai Bird

Narrado por: René Ruiz

The Good Spy is Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Kai Bird’s compelling portrait of the remarkable life and death of one of the most important operatives in CIA history - a man who, had he lived, might have helped heal the rift between Arabs and the West.

On April 18, 1983, a bomb exploded outside the American Embassy in Beirut, killing 63 people. The attack was a geopolitical turning point. It marked the beginning of Hezbollah as a political force, but even more important, it eliminated America’s most influential and effective intelligence officer in the Middle East - CIA operative Robert Ames. What set Ames apart from his peers was his extraordinary ability to form deep, meaningful connections with key Arab intelligence figures. Some operatives relied on threats and subterfuge, but Ames worked by building friendships and emphasizing shared values - never more notably than with Yasir Arafat’s charismatic intelligence chief and heir apparent Ali Hassan Salameh (aka "The Red Prince"). Ames’ deepening relationship with Salameh held the potential for a lasting peace. Within a few years, though, both men were killed by assassins, and America’s relations with the Arab world began heading down a path that culminated in 9/11, the War on Terror, and the current fog of mistrust.

Bird, who as a child lived in the Beirut Embassy and knew Ames as a neighbor when he was 12 years old, spent years researching The Good Spy. Not only does the book draw on hours of interviews with Ames’ widow, and quotes from hundreds of Ames’ private letters, it’s woven from interviews with scores of current and former American, Israeli, and Palestinian intelligence officers as well as other players in the Middle East "Great Game".

What emerges is a masterpiece-level narrative of the making of a CIA officer, a uniquely insightful history of 20th-century conflict in the Middle East, and an absorbing hour-by-hour account of the Beirut Embassy bombing. Even more impressive, Bird draws on his reporter’s skills to deliver a full dossier on the bombers and expose the shocking truth of where the attack’s mastermind resides today.

©2014 Kai Bird (P)2014 Random House Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Kai Bird has produced a compelling and complex narrative that must be read on many levels – including as a detailed account of the immense influence that a truly good man can have on an agency as cynical as the CIA, and as a reminder of a myriad of losses. Robert Ames did not live long enough to get what he most desperately wanted -- a real peace in the Middle East. And America's intelligence agencies no longer seem as welcoming to agents with the wisdom, vision and integrity that Ames exemplified.”
-Seymour Hersh, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Price of Power, The Dark Side of Camelot, and Chain of Command

“Kai Bird has delivered two miracles -- the best day-by-day account of a secret intelligence career in the CIA, and the best book about the murderous intelligence war between Israel and her enemies with America smack in the middle. For years Robert Ames -- The Good Spy -- tried to nudge both sides toward peace until he picked the wrong day to visit the U.S. Embassy in Beirut and was killed by a car bomb. Bird has written a powerful and revealing story that leaves the reader with a troubling question -- how did America get trapped in this war it can do nothing to end?”
--Thomas Powers, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Intelligence Wars and The Man Who Kept the Secrets: Richard Helms and the CIA

“The Good Spy gives us the CIA up close and personal -- the intricate dance of recruiting ‘assets,’ the bureaucratic maneuverings, the family compromises. But because Ames was a Mideast specialist his biography also becomes a knowing history of that region's political failures and relentless descent into violence. Well reported, even-handed, compelling reading -- one of the best books ever written about the CIA.”
-Joseph Kanon, New York Times bestselling author of Los Alamos and The Good German

Great untold story

I really enjoyed listening to this book. I learned a great deal about the conflicts in the Middle East during the 60s and 70s.

Really well done

Any additional comments?

Very well done. It was not political but historical which is hard to find on these kinds of topics. Very respectful of various sides of issues.

Excellent true story that gives historical background to the Middle East

I cried during the chapter of the US embassy bombing, I read Beruit Rules last year and Bob Ames was mentioned several times in that account. The good spy was facinating to me as an Arabist expat who has lived in Jordan and Lebanon. It’s written in a very relatable way and was insightful history about the Palestinian situation in the 70s. Several sections of beruit shocked me 😢

Biased but interesting

Very interesting and informative look at spy craft among competing interests. Unfortunately the authors pro-PLO, anti-Israel, anti-American bias starts to permeate the narrative.

A measured perspective on the mideast

loved it. A remarkable telling of intelligence and empathy in an impossible setiing
An eye opener.

Informative and engrossing

A fascinating tale that educates and greatly describes the origins of current problems. Worth the listen.

My best Freind

I live in Inola Oklahoma at the beginning of this book you hear the name John Wilson He is a good friend. of mine him and his sons john and Joel. great people. john was in the service with ames. said hands down the best freind he ever had !!!! i also learned so much about the middle East. listening to this amazing book !!

The World as Ames Saw It

Although i’m personallyChristian, I grew up and live in a predominantly Jewish culture. I’ve always been a crusader for Israel, our US ally on the Middle East. I suppose I always will be. I have studied the Mossad and the CIA, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen this side of the complex twists and turns between state, politics and spies. It’s extremely sad. Portraying the story of Ames through his love affair with the Arab world brings a new lens to refocus the picture.
This is a richly- written, well researched and sensitive historical saga that brings ever more facets to light.
Well written, riveting and suspenseful, the book is highly informative.

What an amazing person!

While a story about a spy and his life and career, it also expresses the rare attitude of treating people as people and friends. Being kind when it is only your job to communicate. Excellent read.

A solid research and a great storytelling ...

... However the Palestinian problem is not explained in depth, but in shallow terms. The same goes for the Israeli side of the story. Israeli side depicted as an immediate villain.