The Art of Intelligence: Lessons from a Life in the CIA's Clandestine Service

by Henry A. Crumpton

Overview

A legendary CIA spy and counterterrorism expert tells the spellbinding story of his high-risk, action-packed career
 
Revelatory and groundbreaking, The Art of Intelligence will change the way people view the CIA, American intelligence, and international terrorism. Henry A. “Hank” Crumpton, a twenty-four-year veteran of the CIA’s Clandestine Service, offers a thrilling account that delivers profound lessons about what it means to serve as an honorable spy. From CIA recruiting missions in Africa to pioneering new programs like the UAV Predator, from running post–9/11 missions in Afghanistan to heading up all clandestine CIA operations in the United States, Crumpton chronicles his role—in the battlefield and in the Oval Office—in transforming the way America wages war.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780143123378
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/30/2013
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	77,144
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Henry A. Crumpton is the chairman and CEO of Crumpton Group LLC, a global business advisory firm. After a twenty-four-year career in the CIA’s Clandestine Service, he served as the U.S. coordinator for counterterrorism with the rank of Ambassador at Large. He lives in the Washington, D.C., area.

What People are Saying About This

Michael Hayden

Hank Crumpton's The Art of Intelligence is the kind of book every American should read. It puts a human—indeed an American—face on the dark world of espionage and covert action. Above all, it is hard to put down, as we follow the author from Africa to Langley to Afghanistan and finally to the Department of State. And along the way, even with his soft Georgia drawl oozing through the prose, Crumpton is unsparingly sharp in his commentary on himself, his colleagues, the intelligence community and the government that it serves. When praise is earned, it is given. When it is not, you know why. It's hard to imagine a better or more enjoyable gateway to understanding why 9-11 happened....and why it has not happened since. (General Michael Hayden, USAF (Retired); Former Director of the CIA and NSA)

Tom Brokaw

Hank Crumpton’s riveting account of his life in the CIA and the run up to the war in Afghanistan is a treasure for every citizen who wants to know the sacrifices, courage and strategic vision of the clandestine services in war and peace.

David Ignatius

This is the 9/11 memoir that readers have been waiting for, a tale of bravery and daring by the veteran CIA officer who led America's lightning campaign in Afghanistan after September 11. Hank Crumpton is funny, profane and utterly honest in telling the story. In these pages, you'll meet frightened bureaucrats who didn't want to take risks against Bin Laden and some CIA heroes who moved fast, recruited a tribal army in a few weeks and got the job done. President Bush told Crumpton, 'Go get 'em,' and he did. Every page of this CIA memoir tells you that Crumpton loved his work as an American intelligence officer—and was damned good at it. (David Ignatius, Washington Post columnist; author of Bloodmoney)

Steve Coll

The Art of Intelligence reflects the character of its author: Honest, smart, direct and impressive. Crumpton offers important new insights into the C.I.A.'s role in the Taliban's overthrow in 2001, as well as a wider portrait of modern intelligence that is frank and compelling. (Steve Coll, author of Ghost Wars and Private Empire)