Kim philby and the great betrayal by ben macintyre. Kim philby was the most notorious british defector and soviet mole in history. A spy among friends is an extraordinary book about a sordid profession in which the most important attribute is the ability to lie. Macintyres focus on friendship brings an intimacy to this book that is missing from the cardboard stereotypes that populate spy novels and conventional espionage historiesim not a lover of spy novels. Kim philby and the great betrayal kim philby was the most notorious british defector and soviet mole in history. Here he tells the story of his book a spy among friends. Kim philby, spies, and the dangers of paranoia the new. Ben macintyres latest nonfiction thriller, a spy among friends, is about kim philby, the highlevel british spymaster who turned out to be a russian mole. Jul 29, 2014 elie wiesel spent his early years in a small transylvanian town as one of four children. Ben macintyres bottomlessly fascinating new book is an exploration of kim philbys friendships, particularly with nicholas elliott. No one writes about deceit and subterfuge so dramatically, authoritatively or perceptively. Jan 01, 2015 spy among friends by ben macintyre depicts the relationship of three spymasters. Ben macintyre is a writeratlarge for the times of london and the bestselling author of a spy among friends, double cross, operation mincemeat, agent zigzag.
A spy among friends manages to convey philbys satanic charm craig brown, mail on sunday books of the year this account of the highlevel british spymaster who turned out to be a russian mole reads like john le carre but is a solidly researched true story new york times 100 notable books of 2014. A spy among friends is an extraordinary book about a sordid profession in which the most important attribute is the ability to liemacintyres focus on friendship brings an intimacy to this book that is missing from the cardboard stereotypes that populate spy novels and conventional espionage historiesim not a lover of spy novels, yet. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading a spy among friends. A spy among friends 2014 details the life of kim philby, a highly respected operative who rose through the ranks of the british secret services during world war ii and the cold war. Many books have covered philby and the rest of the cambridge five, a spy ring active during and after wwii, that was comprised of british natives who had attained highranking jobs. I would have been happy had it been three times as long. Macintyre is a superb writer, with an eye for the telling detail as fine as any novelistsa spy among friends is as suspenseful as any novel, too, as the clues tighten around philbys guilt. He is the author of nine previous books including agent zigzag, shortlisted for the costa biography award and the galaxy british book award for biography of the year 2008, and the no.
Kim philby and the great betrayal by ben macintyre crown macintyres thesis is that philby was shielded by the dumbly selfprotective ethos of the british upper. Mar 28, 2014 to order a spy among friends or kim philby, each at. With a gleeful irony, the author artfully contrasts the characters and lives of n elliot and j. An engaging book on a tantalising and ultimately tragic subject, if it starts as a study of friendship, it ends as an indictment philip hensher, spectator. There he became friends, in the philbyesque sense of that word, with another excessively fascinating character in this book, james jesus. In this engaging reallife spy story, macintyre double cross pulls back the curtain on the life and exploits of kim philby, who served for decades in britains intelligence community while. Jul 27, 2014 ben macintyres latest nonfiction thriller, a spy among friends, is about kim philby, the highlevel british spymaster who turned out to be a russian mole.
Kim philby and the great betrayal kindle edition by macintyre, ben. The mail on sunday other books on philby may have left one with a feeling of grudging respect, but a spy among friends draws out his icy cold heartthis book consists of 300 pages. With lynda carter, katie wright, marley shelton, josh taylor. Ben macintyres a spy among friends the new york times. A spy among friends by ben macintyre suspected of being a spy for a decade before his 1963 defection to moscow, kim philby escaped punishment with the help of a smooth manner and. Agent, double agent, traitor and enigma, he betrayed every secret of allied operations to the russians in the early years of the cold war. A spy among friends, a classic spookfest, is also a brilliant reconciliation of history and entertainment. May 08, 20 underlying between friends is a notion that oz has upheld for many years. Kim philby and the great betrayal crown is the latest in ben macintyres series on twentiethcentury espionage including the bestselling operation mincemeat. A spy among friends is an absorbing book offering stories of sex, booze, betrayal, suspense, and other risky behaviors. Kim philby and the great betrayal macintyre, ben, le carre, john on. Almost inadvertently, ben macintyre, a times columnist, provides a devastating critique of the british class system and the disasters that result when people assume they know people a spy among friends is an extraordinary book about a sordid profession in which the most important attribute is the ability to lie. Suspected of being a spy for a decade before his 1963 defection to moscow, kim philby. The philby story has been told many times, but never with such sensitivity.
There is no question that kim philby was the most legendary spy of world war ii. Lionsgate adapting kim philby biography a spy among friends. All content included on our site, such as text, images, digital downloads and other, is the property of its content suppliers and protected by us and international laws. There is no question that kim philby was the most legendary spy of. Master storyteller ben macintyres most ambitious work to da. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Boston globe macintyre is a superb writer, with an eye for the telling detail as fine as any novelistsa spy among friends is as suspenseful as any novel, too. It was interesting to read how the old boys network worked and i am sure still works in certain circles of the british and american intelligence community. Jan 01, 2014 ben macintyre is a columnist and associate editor on the times.
To read a spy among friends is a bit like climbing aboard a runaway train in terms of speed and excitement except that macintyre knows exactly where he is going and is in total control of his material daily mail, books of the week. Master storyteller ben macintyres most ambitious work to date brings to life the twentieth centurys greatest spy story. The tv banner has acquired the tv rights to british author ben macintyres new biography a spy among friends. A spy among friends by ben macintyre penguin random house. Nov 14, 2014 what made friends such a hit was, among other things, the infinite bond between the cast, the endless sarcasm, and the struggle of being a twentysomething in new york city. Spy among friends by ben macintyre depicts the relationship of three spymasters. Gripping and as wellcrafted as an episode of smileys people, full of cynical inevitability, secrets, lashings of whiskey and corpses. A spy among friends kim philby and the great betrayal. Lionsgate adapting kim philby biography a spy among. Written with an historians fidelity to fact and a novelists eye for character, a spy among friends is one terrific book. Kim philby was the greatest spy in history, a brilliant and charming man who rose to head britains counterintelligence against the soviet union during the height of the cold warwhile he was secretly working for the enemy. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. What made friends such a hit was, among other things, the infinite bond between the cast, the endless sarcasm, and the struggle of being a twentysomething in new york.
Get 50% off this audiobook at the audiobooksnow online audio book store and download or stream it right to your computer, smartphone or tablet. A spy among friends, a classic spookfest, is also a brilliant reconciliation of history and entertainmentan unputdownable postwar thriller whose every incredible detail is fact not fictiona spellbinding narrativepart of the archetypal grip this story holds for the reader is as a case study in the existential truth that, in human. In a spy among friends, ben macintyre details philbys exploits and betrayals and elucidates exactly why he was able to get away with his activities for so long. Apr 29, 2014 lionsgate is getting into the spy game. To read a spy among friends is a bit like climbing aboard a runaway train in terms of speed and excitement except that macintyre knows exactly where he is going and is in total control of his material daily mail, books of the week it reads like fiction, which is testament to the extraordinary power of the story itself but also to the. Though a seeming paragon of british values, he actually spent his career working as a double agent for the russians. He was the only one of the family to survive what francois maurois, in his introduction, calls the human holocaust of the persecution of the jews, which began with the restrictions, the singularization of the yellow star, the enclosure within the ghetto, and went on to the mass deportations to the ovens. Dallas morning news by now, the story of british double agent harold kim philby may be the most familiar spy yarn ever, fodder for whole libraries of histories, personal memoirs and novels. Underlying between friends is a notion that oz has upheld for many years. I would have been happy had it been three times as long mail on sunday. He has worked as the newspapers correspondent in new york, paris and washington. Kim philby and the great betrayal by ben macintyre in chm, djvu, epub download ebook.
A spy among friends by ben mcintyre great pick for 2020. A spy among friends is not just an elegy, it is an unforgettable requiem observer gripping. A way to shut out the world and disappear into a fictional one, getting to know new people within the pages and riding the. Philby and the great betrayal by macintyre, ben isbn. Many today think of the cold war only as post world war ii.
It appears that two things were crucial to become successful in mi6drink like a fish and be from the right school. Kim philby and the great betrayal from the worlds largest community of readers. Master storyteller ben macintyres thrillingly ambitious a spy among friends tackles the greatest spy story of all. Kim philby and the great betrayal by ben macintyre is a potent study in the psychology of tight bonds between species of a certain class. Kim philby and the great betrayal by ben macintyre in chm, djvu, epub download e book. A spy among friends, ben macintyre shop online for books in. Kim philby, spies, and the dangers of paranoia the new yorker. A spy among friends kim philby and the great betrayal large print average rating. Many people believe that reading and books is a solitary adventure. Elliot of mi6 and angleton of cia, two diehard anticommunist agents were mercilessly duped by their best friend philby. A spy among friends, ben macintyre shop online for books.