The Philby Files: The Secret Life of Master Spy Kim Philby [Hardcover]

Genrikh Borovik (Author), Phillip Knightley (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1994

"Mr. Borovik... expertly weaves commentary together with actual text from internal K.G.B. records on the ring, messages from Philby to Moscow, extensive interviews from 300 hours of tape-recorded sessions with Philby." --The New York Times Book Review

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Students of espionage will value this biography of the legendary Soviet mole who penetrated the inner sanctum of British intelligence. Borovik, a Moscow journalist, taped hundreds of hours of interviews with the master spy during his final years, and was granted access to Philby's KGB files. There's a wealth of new material here, especially on the 1951-56 period, when the shock waves from the Donald Maclean-Guy Burgess defections threatened to unmask Philby. He defended himself so successfully under interrogation that MI6 re-recruited him for an extended mission to Beirut. In 1963, about to be exposed, he defected to Moscow, where he remained until his death in 1988. As depicted in this engrossing biography, presented from the Russian viewpoint, Philby was not only a brilliant spy but a man of charm and wit who, whatever else can be said about him, remained true to his ideals to the end. Photos.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Borovik is not the first to flip through KGB case file 5581, the number of Philby's personnel dossier. Odd documents from it have appeared in recent books, such as a study of the Hess flap of 1941 (Ten Days to Destiny, John Costello, 1993). Anthony Cave Brown, the most commanding biographer thus far of the English mole, certainly had access to the file for Treason in the Blood. Perhaps publishers just ought to print the unexpurgated file to slake the thirst for Philbyiana. In the meantime, Borovik's book, based on his chats with the spy in retirement, hones in on the methods of tradecraft: spotting potential recruits, making the recruitment, and running the agent via signals, ciphers, and drops, all as viewed from the funnel of the file. Juxtaposed with Philby's recollections of his glory days as rewritten by Borovik are interesting verbatim passages from the file that record disagreement between Philby's controls and Moscow Center about their agent's trustworthiness, which apparently was never completely convincing to the KGB, surprisingly enough. Philby was kept ignorant of these doubts, but there is no doubt here that the fanatically specialist reader will dive into this pro-Philby account. Gilbert Taylor

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 382 pages
• Publisher: Little Brown & Co (T) (October 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316102849
• ISBN-13: 978-0316102841
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #142,978 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #58 in Books > History > Military > Canada

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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Intriguing Piece of the Philby Puzzle, May 16, 2005

By 

F. S. L'hoir (Irvine, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Philby Files: The Secret Life of Master Spy Kim Philby (Hardcover)

Genrikh Borovik's absorbing account of the life and times of Kim Philby is especially compelling. Based upon a combination of personal interviews with the Cambridge spy during the last years of his life and a comparison of his reminiscences with the actual KGB files (which Philby was never allowed to see), the book offers new insights to the career of a man who was as enigmatic as he was charming (characteristics about which both his friends and enemies were in agreement).

Borovik, a Russian journalist (who seems to be a cross between Tom Brokaw and Phil Donahue), was able to get access both to Philby and to the KGB files because of Glasnost. He is no apologist for the old communist regime, nor is he flummoxed by the Philby charm. Borovik lets the reader know when his subject has not been completely candid with him on a particular topic. Nevertheless, the author presents a sympathetic portrait of a man (with a delightful sense of humor) who may have betrayed his country (during the Cold War) but never betrayed his ideals.

Borovik also provides a fascinating glimpse into the years in which Philby, who had resigned from MI6 under suspicion after Burgess and Maclean had defected to Moscow, was rehired by British Intelligence as an agent in Beirut (a touchy subject about which most books are reticent).

Perhaps one of the most interesting aspects of the book, however, is its depiction of the dilemma in which Philby found himself--indeed, Burgess and Blunt found themselves in the same pickle--when the information he provided was judged by the KGB to be "too good" to be believed! British Intelligence could not have been so "unprofessional that they failed to notice that Soviet agents were carrying out documents from SIS by the suitcase [.]" (p. 213). Philby had to have been a double agent, as did the other two (For some reason, they never doubted Maclean.). Moscow's obsession that Philby and the others were British plants stemmed from the fact that when the agents were continually asked how many British spies were working in Russia, and the (truthful) answer was always "none," they were never believed. For years, in fact, Philby and the others were hounded by the KGB and forced to write endless time-wasting reports on the (non-existent) "main issue," the number of British agents in the Soviet Union. Philby's answer remained unwavering: "There are no British agents in the Soviet Union.". Although this cloud of suspicion would eventually dispel, it would nevertheless materialize from time to time and cast its shadow on Kim Philby even after his defection, depending upon who was in power in Moscow.

Borovik's account of the death of Kim Philby, who served the Soviet Union for some thirty years, is both moving and ironic. As the author observes on page 375, "Three and a half years [after his death], the country to which he had devoted his life ceased to exist."

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Important New Insights, May 4, 2009

By 

William R. Drake (Nevada City, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Philby Files: The Secret Life of Master Spy Kim Philby (Hardcover)

This was the third book I read that focused on Philby. (The other two books: Phillip Knightley's valuable book "Philby: The Life and Views of the KGB Masterspy" [based on interviews with Philby in Russia] and Philby's own very readable book "My Silent War"). Amazon has a very good review of "The Philby Files" already posted ("An Intriguing Piece of the Philby Puzzle" by F. S. L'hoir, 5/16/05) and I will just add some to what that writer wrote. In addition to being granted access to the remarkable information in Philby's KGB files and interviewing Philby in Russia for many hours, the Russian author also interviewed Yuri Modin who, as a KGB agent, worked with Burgess, Blunt and Cairncross. Among other things, Modin gives valuable insights into the defections of Burgess and Maclain, revealing that it was the KGB that was responsible for Burgess' one-way flight to Russia, which had a big hand in destroying Philby's intelligence career. (Philby always blamed Burgess for his defection.) As well as revealing the KGB's mistrust of Philby for a period of time, and previously unknown details about the Burgess/Maclain defections, the book reveals details about the recruitments of Maclain and Burgess. Borovik also gives a good picture of the Stalin era, during which several of Philby's Russian handlers were called back to Russia and executed as "spies." For those who have not read other books on Philby, the well-written book gives a pretty good overview of the Philby story. Perhaps unavoidably, the book repeats a number of details that are in the other two books I read, which made for boring reading at times. In spite of that, because of the new information the author uncovers, this book is a "must read" for anyone seriously interested in Philby and/or the Cambridge spies.