The Agency: The Rise and Decline of the CIA (A Touchstone book) [Paperback]

John Ranelagh (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ranelagh, a British writer, provides here a major overview of the Central Intelligence Agency from its founding in 1947 to the present. Based largely on hundreds of interviews, the book examines the personality and policies of each director in the context of the times. The agency's public posture is traced in detail: how, for instance, its agents began the '60s as "closet heroes," emerging as public heroes in the Cuban missile crises only to become public villains as a result of the Vietnam War. Favorable emphasis is placed on the contribution of William Colby, the most beleaguered of the directors, whose voluntary disclosures laid open the agency's inner workings, "giving onlookers the extraordinary spectacle of a secret service having its secrets revealed by the nation on whose behalf it operated." Colby's successor, George Bush, is also given high marks, especially for the way he overcame the public's initial skepticism about his abilities. As to William Casey, the current director, Ranelagh draws no conclusions, though he does call him insensitive and "unhaunted by ideals." Photos.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Much has been written on the Central Intelligence Agency over the past two decades, but until now there has not been an exhaustive and widely accessible history of the CIA. Based on hundreds of interviews and a careful reading of many books and documents, The Agency is a highly readable work of objective scholarship. Ranelagh's writing style is lively, and his character sketches can be devastating. The book is well documented and contains a fine selective bibliography. In addition to documenting the history of the CIA, Ranelagh admirably surveys the politics of the postwar years and is careful to place CIA activities within the context of international events. His final section is an excellent essay on the state of the CIA under the Reagan administration, and on the shift away from human intelligence to a highly technical operation. Highly recommended for public and academic libraries.Thomas A. Karel, Franklin & Marshall Coll. Lib., Lancaster, Pa.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 869 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone Books (June 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671639943
• ISBN-13: 978-0671639945
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.5 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,281,436 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Definitive History of U.S. Cold War Intelligence, June 15, 2001

By 

Jackson Pollack "Chris" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Agency: The Rise and Decline of the CIA (Hardcover)

Ranelagh, in a massive and engaging tome, brings alive the characters and story of the CIA in a fair and balanced way. My graduate class on National Security Affairs and the Intelligence Community used this book as one of the primary texts. From Julia Childs to James Jesus Angelton to Richard Colby to William Casey, this wonderful story tells the history of the Agency, its people and their interaction with presidents, Congress, the Soviet Union (KGB) and the foreign policy process. It covers the assasination attempts of Castro and various other figures as well as such bizarre episodes such as the attempt to rig up a cat as an assasin. I couldn't put the book down once I got started, however, because of the depth and breadth of its coverage. Make no mistake, this is a serious, meticulously researched and encompassing historical work. The book is as good a history of the Cold War as it is of the CIA, and covers high level decisionmaking at the presidential and Congressional level from WWII through the Reagan Administration. Not a diatribe for or against the CIA or US foreign poilicy, Agency is a first rate account of the actual events and people behind them at all the critical moments in the CIA's history. Ranelagh does a superb job at explaining the context behind the decsions that were made. For example, he gives the reader an awesome sense of the fear of Communism that lead to extreme measures being taken at various junctures without being an apologist. This book is absolutely essential reading for those in the intelligence, foreign policy and defense communities, and highly recommended for anyone interested in Cold War history. Perhaps more importantly, its a terrific read!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive and Concise, March 5, 2003

By 

"forchewzee" (lake elsinore, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Agency: The Rise and Decline of the CIA (A Touchstone book) (Paperback)

John Ranelagh's book, The Agency: The Rise and Decline of the CIA, is the definitive text on the CIA. It is comprehensive yet concise; moreover, Mr. Ranelagh took on a major project in creating this masterpiece, with so much information, and so much history, it would be nearly impossible to write an accurate history of the CIA. Yet Ranelagh accomplishes this feat marvelously. I, personally, would liked to have seen more on the scientific branch of the CIA in this book; however, it would have made the text to long and cumbersome. A much needed third edition would be relative, seeing as that the book does end with the Iran-Contra scandal, and the CIA's history has grown and transformed over the last decade with the appointment of George Tenet as its Director.