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| Comrade J | 
 enlarge | Author: Pete Earley
Publisher: Putnam Adult
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
Buy New: $11.69
You Save: $14.26 (55%)
New (39) Used (14) from $9.95
Avg. Customer Rating:  20 reviews
Sales Rank: 24492
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 352
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.5
ISBN: 0399154396
Dewey Decimal Number: 327.1247073092
EAN: 9780399154393
ASIN: 0399154396
Publication Date: January 24, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Necessary Reminder of Post-Soviet Espionage March 9, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
John Barron's Operation Solo (1996) provided an excellent account of a Cold War era Soviet who became an informant for the U.S.; this is a more modern example, concerning a senior KGB officer whose exploits continued into the Yeltsin and Putin eras. The extent of Russian post-Soviet espionage on the U.S. is underappreciated and this is a sell-written corrective.
A good, true spy yarn April 11, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Just about any average adult in the United States now knows that the only time politicians lie is when their lips are moving. The average adult also knows that a large portion of both private business and government, particularly those who speak to the press, often give, shall we say, misleading, incomplete, or not quite true summaries of whatever it is on the news that particular day. At best, it's their side of the story, told how they want to tell it, and relating how much they're willing to give you. In many cases, they're giving you disinformation. Disinformation is what ordinary people call lies.
All that said, I -- having spent many years working for various U.S. Government intelligence agencies, including NSA, both overseas and in the U.S. -- found Pete Earley's Comrade J: The Untold Secrets of Russia's Master Spy in America After the End of the Cold War to be very informative and revealing. In some cases, irritating and exasperating. Not with the facts as presented, not with the author, and not with the subject of the book -- Russian spymaster, defector, and double agent Sergei Tretyakov -- but with what the author and Tretyakov, code-named Comrade J, tell us about the sorry state of affairs within our own government.
Now for some specifics. First, an example of sorting out the truth. Early in the book, Tretyakov says, according to the author, "... Russian intelligence targeted President Clinton's deputy secretary of state, Strobe Talbott, and ran a carefully calculated campaign designed to manipulate him." Talbott, in a written reply, said, "... he knew that Mamedov was relaying all of their conversations ..." back to Russian intelligence.
The following paragraph says, "Just the same, the FBI took the accusations about Talbott seriously ... In 1999, FBI officials asked Secretary (of State) Albright not to share information with Talbott ..." Talbott, as then described, was tagged by the SVR, Russia's new name for the KGB, "... as a `specific unofficial contact' - a specific term that the SVR used to identify its most secret, highly placed intelligence sources." "Specific unofficial contact" also means a person who's passing classified, or inside, or both, information.
See what I mean? Obviously, there's a little more to the story in Untold Secrets, but nothing that would unmuddy the waters.
An example of self-serving words is this, when Earley was introduced by his "FBI contact" to Tretyakov: " `Our only purpose here today is to introduce you. We are not encouraging him to tell his story, nor are we discouraging him (wink, wink, nudge, nudge). He wanted to meet you and we agreed to facilitate it. We will have no part in your talks.' " All this verbiage in diplospeak means is, "He can spill his guts because we think it will serve our purposes."
Think back. When has the FBI or CIA or any of the alphabet soup agencies ever set up a meeting between a defector and a reporter, or writer, before they had their case built? Let me save you some time. The answer is never. If they don't have the defector in their pocket, whether it's with money (the usual way), or with threats (who knows?), or patriotism towards his new country (HA!), he flat does not speak to anybody. Often, the people "protecting" him don't let him see even his own family.
So where's the truth here? I sure as hell don't know. All I can do is guess, just like you.
On the very next page, Tretyakov is quoted. "As a people, you (Americans) are very naive about Russia and its intentions. You believe because the Soviet Union no longer exists, Russia now is your friend. It isn't, and I can show how the SVR is trying to destroy the U.S. even today and even more than the KGB did during the Cold War." That is the Gospel according to Saint Tretyakov, and you can assuredly take it to the bank.
Tretyakov goes on to give up the SVR, the old KGB, family jewels about a number of UN officials who were in Russia's pocket, and some who still are. He names a few Canadians who were regular sources of Comrade J, and who've never been outed. He clears up some anomalies that U.S. intelligence has wondered about, but were never able to pin down. He was a double agent for several years before he defected, turning over thousands of SVR Top Secret cables, the highest classification possible, and hundreds of SVR reports, also Top Secret. He relates how and when a Russian spy inside the UN siphoned off as much as a half-billion dollars meant for starving Iraqi women and children before Saddam's fall, and was given an award for it by Vladimir Putin, because he lined quite a few pockets, including possibly Putin's, in the process.
In addition, Tretyakov tells how the USSR had once intended to rid itself of nuclear and chemical waste by taking them to a remote Arctic island and destroying them by setting off a nuclear bomb. (!!) He tells how some people had given the businessman who was arranging this disposal a nuclear weapon, because they couldn't pay him. And he tells how all of this was endorsed by the Kremlin. I could go on for another couple of paragraphs, but I urge you to read Untold Secrets for yourself. Some of you will say I told you so. Others will be amazed. And some of you may feel bound to do something about it.
Gripes. Earley makes a couple of minor mistakes, for instance incorrectly saying that the KGB and SVR always called their operatives intelligence "officers," while the CIA called theirs intelligence "agents." [CIA operatives are called officers; the people who spy for them are called agents.] He also leaves a few gaps in parts of his narrative which leave the reader guessing as to the outcome. I can excuse the minor mistakes, since Earley was first a reporter, then an author, and not necessarily knowledgeable about intelligence. The holes in the story, however, should have been addressed, either by him or his editor. Many didn't seem to be germane to Tretyakov's story, for the most part, so I can see how they could have been overlooked. But since they were brought up, they should have been seen through, or readers should have been told they're unanswerable, at least for now. Many of them look like they could have been cleared up with as little as an additional sentence or two.
My big gripes, however, are the lack of a glossary and an index. Untold Secrets is a complicated read, especially for those without a background in intelligence. A glossary would have made looking up the uncommonly used and heard terms and acronyms a simple matter, and would have been an even simpler matter to include. The author is good about explaining acronyms and uncommon terms the first time they're used, but after that you're on your own. There's no glossary to look them up in, and there's no index to refer to.
The index in a book of this complexity is absolutely essential. Again, Earley explains who a person is and his connections the first time he introduces that person. Later references, particularly in a book of this length and one that tells us a gripping, but convoluted and complicated story, again leave you on your own. If you don't recall the particulars of the person, place or event that's brought up a second or third time, then you have two choices. Forget it, which could mean a gap in your comprehension, or go through it again, page by page, trying to locate the original reference. The absences of the index and the glossary are major shortcomings. Particularly nowadays, when, in creating the index, you don't have to do much beyond hitting the "Find" key and let the machine do most of the rest of your work for you.
All that said, however, I still highly recommend Comrade J: The Untold Secrets of Russia's Master Spy in America After the End of the Cold War to anybody's who interested in the future of the country, or an otherwise untold part of the recent past. Or to anybody who's interested in a good spy yarn. A good, true spy yarn, that is. After all, Tretyakov is still, by far, the most important spy ever to come over. The last chapter pretty much summarizes his importance.
One last thing. Remember when I scoffed about a spy defecting because of patriotism towards his new country (HA!)? I may have to change my mind on that.
Valuable behind-the-scenes look at Russia June 26, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Earley's book is a well written biography of one of Russia's leading and well-placed spies in Canada and the U.S. who defected to the United States bringing a great deal of valuable intelligence with him. The CIA and FBI will not openly confirm the details of Tretyakov's story, and because of the defection, traveling to Russia would submit the author to a risk to his own safety. Earley is therefore forced to relate the story in more of a "Sergei says" manner to avoid appearing to stand behind the details related in the book. While this style makes the book less than gripping, it is nonetheless fascinating.
I found the look into Russia, particularly since the dismantling of the Soviet Union, to be absorbing and chilling. I don't believe that the American public has had an opportunity to see the true effect of the swift political changes in Russia. We have been lulled into a false sense that Russia is now an ally, which could not be farther from the truth if what Sergei says is accurate. Although the author could not verify much of the information, the story rings true and Earley has made efforts to confirm many details as an indication of the truthfulness of his subject.
The book is an easy read and presents a view of the new Russia which is seldom presented in the media. I recommend it for anyone interested in national security or international relations.
Comrade J April 15, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The book is very good... It's exactly what you imagine when you read the synopse. It's a real tale of an ex-KGB secret agent (or so it seems), and it shows how a spy life may be, somtimes, hard to conciliate with personal lfe.
It's much worth what it costs.
A patriot opens his eyes May 5, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Tretyakov was a career spy who honored his motherland and the KGB who was responsible for protecting it. Over time, though, he came to see the contradictions in the Soviet system and the corruption of those in the highest positions of power. This only worsened when the Soviet system broke apart. The book chronicles the author's development as an independent thinker. It is not idealogical. He is simply a patriot who realizes that his patriotism has become misplaced.
The story also reminds us that the world is a rough place, and is full of powerful people who don't follow the same rules we do. This is especially clear in the account of the Iraq Oil-for-Food program, which may have been the biggest international con of all time.
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