A Higher Form of Killing opens with the first devastating battlefield use of lethal gas in World War I, and then investigates the stockpiling of biological weapons during World War II and in the decades afterward as well as the inhuman experiments con-ducted to test their effectiveness. This updated edition includes a new Introduction and a new final chapter exposing frightening developments in recent years, including the black market that emerged in chemical and biological weapons following the breakup of the Soviet Union, the acquisition of these weapons by various Third World states, the attempts of countries such as Iraq to build up arsenals, and--particularly and most recently--the use of these weapons in terrorist attacks.
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"The best account of gas and germ warfare available."
--The Washington Post
"An absorbing and unsettling history, an exhaustive exploration of a little-known but potentially apocalyptic aspect of warfare, the whole thing carrying the punch of Armageddon. It reminds us that the world could end not with a nuclear bang but in whimpers of fevered agony."
--Chicago Sun-Times
"Compelling . . . The authors make clear why governments have shrouded such weapon programs in even more secrecy than their nuclear work."
--Financial Times
--The Washington Post
"An absorbing and unsettling history, an exhaustive exploration of a little-known but potentially apocalyptic aspect of warfare, the whole thing carrying the punch of Armageddon. It reminds us that the world could end not with a nuclear bang but in whimpers of fevered agony."
--Chicago Sun-Times
"Compelling . . . The authors make clear why governments have shrouded such weapon programs in even more secrecy than their nuclear work."
--Financial Times
From the Inside Flap
A Higher Form of Killing opens with the first devastating battlefield use of lethal gas in World War I, and then investigates the stockpiling of biological weapons during World War II and in the decades afterward as well as the inhuman experiments con-ducted to test their effectiveness. This updated edition includes a new Introduction and a new final chapter exposing frightening developments in recent years, including the black market that emerged in chemical and biological weapons following the breakup of the Soviet Union, the acquisition of these weapons by various Third World states, the attempts of countries such as Iraq to build up arsenals, and--particularly and most recently--the use of these weapons in terrorist attacks.
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More About the Author
Robert Harris is the author of Pompeii, Enigma, and Fatherland. He has been a television correspondent with the BBC and a newspaper columnist for the London Sunday Times and The Daily Telegraph. His novels have sold more than ten million copies and been translated into thirty languages. He lives in Berkshire, England, with his wife and four children.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Higher Form of Killing,
This review is from: A Higher Form of Killing: The Secret History of Chemical and Biological Warfare (Paperback)
Terrorism thrives on fear and imagination in designing weapons of mass destruction to inflict the most damage and death. Massive planes flown into prominent symbols of American pride, bomb-laden trucks exploding in front of U.S. embassies or Marine Corps barracks, explosive charges on a small boat rammed into a United States warship, these are the events that come to mind when one envisions terrorist attacks. Chemical and biological warfare seem an improbable choice for terrorists to use due to inability to procure materials or test for reliability. Or is it?
A Higher Form of Killing offers another area for terror to grasp hold. Dubbed the "The best account of gas and germ warfare available" by the Washington Post, A Higher Form of Killing presents the history of chemical and biological warfare through several first hand accounts as well as declassified documents that grimly describe its effects. Concentrating primarily on the UK-U.S. relationship developed out of World War One continuing through to today, authors Harris and Paxman shed light on several bio/chem warfare programs developed including releasing "inert" gases over populous cities to see how far the gases would penetrate, full blown experiments using live germs and gases over deserted islands, CIA experiments using prostitutes who administered bio drugs into unsuspecting clients and many more. With several research facilities conducting experiments throughout the western world, germ and gas warfare is a mature industry capable of producing and delivering a crippling blow if employed in a devilish manner. A Higher Form of Killing is a must read for anyone wishing to learn more about the history of bio/chem warfare and for those who dare dream of its future if these deadly weapons were possessed by terrorists; however, it is NOT recommended for those with a weak stomach (graphic descriptions and pictures of physical effects from weapons in this book). A Higher Form of Killing was written in 1981 and thus is a bit outdated; however a revised edition was released in 2002 (still outdated).
10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great, but dated information,
By "alaninsa" (San Antonio) - See all my reviews
This review is from: A Higher Form of Killing: The Secret History of Chemical and Biological Warfare (Paperback)
This is an outstanding book that outlines the history of chemical warfare through the 1980s. It's an outstanding text and one that was in everyone's personal library when I was a student at the Army Chemical School.Buy it and understand the storied past of our most frightful weapons.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome but scary book,
By Bebe Deimos (AZ, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Higher Form of Killing: The Secret History of Chemical and Biological Warfare (Paperback)
The book was written before the events of 9/11, however the topics are even more poignant today then they were when it was originally written.
Not too technical a read and this book exposes a lot of valuable information about the (expected) double-speak of governments regarding secret research projects. This book is a definite read for anyone interested in the history or possible future of biological and chemical weapons.
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
The twenty-second of April 1915 had been a warm and sunny day, but toward the end of the afternoon a breeze sprang up. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
chemical arms race, new gas masks, germ weapons, binary weapons, gas casualties, nerve gas weapons, chemical warfare research, warfare convention, anthrax bombs, biological bomb, gas warfare, germ attack, defensive research, biological warfare research, biological warfare program, war gases, botulinus toxin, gas stocks, biological devices, warfare work, nerve gases, harmless bacteria, mustard gas, shellfish poison, spray tanks Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, Porton Down, Second World War, Soviet Union, Chemical Corps, First World War, Fort Detrick, Geneva Protocol, United Kingdom, Edgewood Arsenal, New York, Camp Detrick, Ministry of Defense, Agent Orange, San Francisco, Biological Weapons Convention, State Department, Operation Ranch Hand, Chemical Warfare Service, Pine Bluff, Red Army, Viet Cong, Saddam Hussein, Special Brigade, Tripartite Agreement New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
The twenty-second of April 1915 had been a warm and sunny day, but toward the end of the afternoon a breeze sprang up. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
chemical arms race, new gas masks, germ weapons, binary weapons, gas casualties, nerve gas weapons, chemical warfare research, warfare convention, anthrax bombs, biological bomb, gas warfare, germ attack, defensive research, biological warfare research, biological warfare program, war gases, botulinus toxin, gas stocks, biological devices, warfare work, nerve gases, harmless bacteria, mustard gas, shellfish poison, spray tanks Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, Porton Down, Second World War, Soviet Union, Chemical Corps, First World War, Fort Detrick, Geneva Protocol, United Kingdom, Edgewood Arsenal, New York, Camp Detrick, Ministry of Defense, Agent Orange, San Francisco, Biological Weapons Convention, State Department, Operation Ranch Hand, Chemical Warfare Service, Pine Bluff, Red Army, Viet Cong, Saddam Hussein, Special Brigade, Tripartite Agreement New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 38
books:
See all 38 books this book cites
2
books
cite this book:
- Chemical and Biological Warfare by Seymour Hersh on 5 pages
- The Riddle of the Rhine by Victor Lefebure in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
- Medical Research Council: Sale of the Mount Vernon Site, Hampstead: [Hc]: [1994-95]: House of Commons Papers: [1994-95] by Great Britain on page 71, page 83, and page 85
- Hankey: Man of Secrets by Stephen Roskill on page 83, and Back Matter
- Goodbye to All That (Penguin Modern Classics) by Robert Graves on page 14, and Back Matter
See all 38 books this book cites
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