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Steve Coll

Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and Bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 Paperback – December 28, 2004

by Steve Coll (Author)

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Winner of the 2005 Pulitzer Prize

From the award-winning and bestselling author of Directorate S, the explosive first-hand account of America's secret history in Afghanistan

To what extent did America’s best intelligence analysts grasp the rising thread of Islamist radicalism? Who tried to stop bin Laden and why did they fail? Comprehensively and for the first time, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Steve Coll recounts the history of the covert wars in Afghanistan that fueled Islamic militancy and sowed the seeds of the September 11 attacks. Based on scrupulous research and firsthand accounts by key government, intelligence, and military personnel both foreign and American, Ghost Wars details the secret history of the CIA’s role in Afghanistan (including its covert operations against Soviet troops from 1979 to 1989), the rise of the Taliban, the emergence of bin Laden, and the failed efforts by U.S. forces to find and assassinate bin Laden in Afghanistan.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Certainly the finest historical narrative so far on the origins of al Qaeda in the post-Soviet rubble of Afghanistan . . . Ghost Wars provides fresh details and helps explain the motivations behind many crucial decisions."--The New York Times Book Review

“The CIA itself would be hard put to beat his grasp of global events … Deeply satisfying.”--The New York Review of Books

“A well written, authoritative, high-altitude drama with few heroes, many villains, bags of cash, and a tragic ending—one that may not have been inevitable.”--The Washington Post

About the Author

Steve Coll is the author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Ghost Wars and the dean of the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University, and from 2007 to 2013 was president of the New America Foundation, a public policy institute in Washington, D.C. He is a staff writer for The New Yorker, and previously worked for twenty years at The Washington Post, where he received a Pulitzer Prize for explanatory journalism in 1990. He is the author of seven other books, including On the Grand Trunk Road, The Bin Ladens, Private Empire, and Directorate S.

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Product details

Paperback: 736 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books; Reprint edition (December 28, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0143034669
ISBN-13: 978-0143034667
Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Customer Reviews: 427 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,018 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2 in Pakistan History
- #2 in Central Asia History
- #18 in Middle Eastern Politics

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Customer reviews

427 customer reviews

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El Dudereeno

Stops too soon, the eve of 9/11

May 20, 2018

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

interesting read that reinforces my strong conviction (after a 20 year career in the Army)-that NOTHING is ever as simple as portrayed in movies and on TV, which is how the average American views our world. I am disillusioned in our governments constant turmoil whenever the White House changes ownership. This book is a beautiful accounting of bureaucratic morass.

21 people found this helpful

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A.J. Shupack

Very detailed well written historical account, but slow going.

July 11, 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Well written with tons of extreme detail. Coll knows his stuff and puts things into perspective very eloquently. Certainly an interesting read. I had to finish it, but slows to a crawl at points so was tough to continue at times. Did not have me looking forward to next page and chapter like other non fiction books I have read. It read like a history book. Other writers can make history feel more exciting. This is a matter of fact account with no style to speak of in my opinion.

19 people found this helpful

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Nilotic American

Great read and Insights

August 18, 2018

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Well researched book into the unseen world and activities of American spies and military in Afghanistan and Pakistan. For those who have desire to understand the key role secret missions play in America's foreign policy this is the book for you. The writer goes beyond media sound bites and facetious political theatre in Washington to excavate the real reasons why America is on Afghanistan and may I add how Bin Laden became such a force. For those who have never understood why the USA continues to dance with the terrorist supporting Pakistani regimes, this a good primer. The author traces the relationship between the USA and dubious characters and dictators from the 1960s through 911 to the present time. Defintely recommend.

13 people found this helpful

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Douglass C. Stevens

Excellent research refined in 2nd editIon

November 24, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Found this well constructed and deeply sourced. There were no apparent gaps in the connected dots and most connections made solid sense. The path to 9/11 was through these pages in great detail.

16 people found this helpful

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Matthew Cornwall

Historical Understanding of Region Helpful

June 13, 2019

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

For some, the breadth of knowledge regarding 18th, 19th, and 20th century Russian and Middle Eastern history combined with American and British foreign policy is vague at best. Although it helps, Steve Coll helps familiarize the novice reader and gets them up to par quite well. Despite that, the book is quite heavy and slightly outdated (2004). It does give a very good historical perspective for each important figure leading up to September 11th, 2001. We all remember what happened that day and what took place immediately after, but very few know the intel and the lack of Presidential prioritization (Carter, Reagan, H.W. Bush, and Clinton). Understanding the difference between al-Qaeda, ISIS, and the Taliban would be rather helpful. Understanding American foreign policy in the Middle East following the fall of the USSR is helpful and helps better understand how American foreign policy viewed the Taliban at the time. This was a very good book, but, like I said, it’s very heavy, long, and hard to really grasp an interest for if you’re not truly interested in the particular topic. If you love understanding American foreign policy, the Middle East, Russia, etc. you will love this book.

5 people found this helpful

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Leon Lam

Excellent

November 19, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Very detailed analysis on CIA activity in Afghanistan during the Soviet invasion and Washington's often confusing policy on Central Asia. Coll precisely pointed out that some of our "allies", like Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, are definitely less reliable and trustworthy than some claimed. This book serves a warning to statesmen on foreign policy.

10 people found this helpful

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N. C. Moore

Dizzying, Sobering... Fantastic

September 6, 2013

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This work is the most comprehensive historical narrative of any event that I've ever interacted with. An endorsement on the back cover by The New York Review of Books notes "The CIA itself would be hard put to beat his grasp of Global Events." To me, this seemed overstatement... until I read the book.

The scope of this book is beyond even my ability to follow. Its easy to see why he was awarded a Pulitzer for his effort. I feel like I should get some sort of award just for reading it. But due to the book's scope and the fact that I am almost completely new to reading about modern foreign affairs in the Middle East I am not inclined to give a critical review of this book.

Instead, I'll reflect on how I experienced this book. I relied heavily on reading techniques I learned from Mortimer Adler and patiently prodded through hundreds of names, dates, and places completely foreign to me. The 4 page character list at the book's beginning was of some help but reading was often a dizzying experience. Once I got used to calmly allowing thousands of interesting characters and details slip through my short-term memory I was amazed at how much I learned about history (Afgan-soviet war), foreign policy, internal political pressures, mucky bureaucracy, and the inter-workings of the CIA. It was such a satisfying, educational experience.

Coll writes with a balanced, non-partisan hand, refraining from commentary and equally passing judgment on the most apparent issues.

I now feel as I have some of the language and context necessary to understand America's involvement in foreign affairs.

This is truly a spectacular work and I recommend it to any hearty individual.

6 people found this helpful

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DaveW

Fantastic read all the way until the last few pages

October 31, 2011

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I gave this book a solid 4 stars because the subject is so interesting and it keeps you clued to the pages all the way to the last few pages. Instead of ending in a giant crescendo of planes flying into the twin towers, it just winds down into anti climatic ending that leaves you feeling very unfulfilled and wishing for more. I hate to make the comparison to a romantic interlude that ends with a huge disappointment but I can't think of a better one. All thru the book you are seeing the connections come together and know where they will eventually end and the closer you get the more exciting it becomes and then finally when you're ready for the ultimate climax, the author simply walks away, leaving the reader wondering what the heck just happened. But this is just a minor complaint, the book itself is wonderfully written and researched and would have been an easy 5 star book had it not ended too soon. All in all, I'm glad I bought this book and recommend it to others.

16 people found this helpful

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