Secret Weapons of the Cold War: From the H-Bomb to SDI [Paperback]

Bill Yenne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2005

The highly classified Doomsday weapons that agents on both sides of the Iron Curtain once risked their lives to protect.

Military expert Bill Yenne reveals the sophisticated weaponry that would have launched Armageddon if the Cold War had turned hot--weapons so closely guarded that people would kill to learn their secrets.

Go behind the Curtain:

- SAC--the secret weapon that prevented World War III
- Spy satellites and spy planes
- Stealth aircraft and submarines
- Ballistic and cruise missiles
- The Strategic Triad of MAD--Mutual Assured Destruction
- Human warriors on the battlefield of outer space--the Cold War in orbit
- "Star Wars"--the controversial weapons system that ended the Cold War
- And much more

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Berkley (March 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 042520149X
• ISBN-13: 978-0425201497
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,343,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Bill Yenne is the author of several novels and over three dozen books on historical topics, as well as having been a contributor to encyclopedias of both world wars. He has traveled throughout the world researching his books.

The "New Yorker" wrote of "Sitting Bull," his biography of the great Lakota leader, that it "excels as a study in leadership." This book was named to the number 14 spot among Amazon's 100 Best Books of the Year.

"Library Journal" observed that "enthusiastic World War II readers will be drawn to" his dual biography, "Aces High: The Heroic Story of the Two Top Scoring American Aces of World War II."

Recently, his book "Convair Deltas" was named as "Book of the Month" by "Air Classics," while his book "Tommy Gun" was named "Pick of the Month" by "Shooting Illustrated."

His book "Guinness: The 250 Year Quest for the Perfect Pint" was listed among the top business books of the year by "Condé Nast Portfolio Magazine," which rated Yenne's tome as its TOP pick for "Cocktail Conversation."

Yenne's "Rising Sons: The Japanese American GIs Who Fought for the United States in World War II," was praised by Walter Boyne, former Director of the National Air & Space Museum, who called it "a fast moving... page turner," and the "best book yet written on the saga."

The "Wall Street Journal" wrote, when reviewing his "Indian Wars: The Campaign for the American West," that Yenne writes with "cinematic vividness," and says of his work that it "has the rare quality of being both an excellent reference work and a pleasure to read."

The author lives in San Francisco, California, and on the web at www.BillYenne.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Eye-Opening and Very Informative, February 9, 2007

By 

laz_254 "laz_254" (miami, fl United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Secret Weapons of the Cold War: From the H-Bomb to SDI (Paperback)

This book was excellenty researched and full of unheard of weapons data from both sides of the iron curtain. This book should be the follow-on book to Deep Black (circa 1985 by Clive Burrows?) which talked about some of those weapons in their idea/development phases. This book by Bill Yenne mentioned weapons systems never written about in newspapers. The beginning of the book is a little dry in that it covers the history of spy satellite development with quite a bit of detail, but really nothing new to one who has read other books on the subject. After that it picks up the pace and becomes a treasure find of relatively unknown info on Soviet weapons systems as well as American. I will likely read this book again because I found it so full of historical (concise) and technical data/detail. Certainly a reference to anyone interested in high tech weapons of the Cold War and beyond. I would have rated 5-stars, but too many grammar/syntax errors.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Covers Everything!, January 10, 2007

By 

A. McDonald "A. McDonald" (TN United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Secret Weapons of the Cold War: From the H-Bomb to SDI (Paperback)

If it was a weapons system in the cold war, on either side, it is covered here! Very interesting and informative!

5.0 out of 5 stars secret weapons of the cold war, September 9, 2009

By 

Mr. V. E. Beer - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Secret Weapons of the Cold War: From the H-Bomb to SDI (Paperback)

this small little pocket book covers everything and its a great informative and enjoyable book to read over over again well worth it worth five stars even on the price