Sleeper Agent: The Atomic Spy in America Who Got Away
- Downloads：5665
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-17 17:31:09
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Ann Hagedorn
- ISBN：B08LDXW7ZH
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Maine Colonial
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I received a free publisher's advance review copy， via Netgalley。I recently read Anne Sebba’s excellent biography of Ethel Rosenberg。 Rosenberg， with her husband Julius， were famously convicted of being Soviet agents and killed in the electric chair at Sing Sing prison on June 19， 1953。 The Rosenbergs were accused of being integral to a ring of spies who stole secrets of the US atomic bomb program and passed them on to the Soviets。While the Rosenbergs are the most famous of those involved in Wor I received a free publisher's advance review copy， via Netgalley。I recently read Anne Sebba’s excellent biography of Ethel Rosenberg。 Rosenberg， with her husband Julius， were famously convicted of being Soviet agents and killed in the electric chair at Sing Sing prison on June 19， 1953。 The Rosenbergs were accused of being integral to a ring of spies who stole secrets of the US atomic bomb program and passed them on to the Soviets。While the Rosenbergs are the most famous of those involved in World War II atomic-weapon spying for the USSR， Anne Hagedorn’s subject is possibly the most unknown。 It was clear after World War II that atomic secrets of the Manhattan Project had been passed on to the Soviets， allowing them to develop their own bombs years before scientists predicted。 The hunt to unmask those involved was on， revealing a ring that gave the Soviets information about bomb development at Los Alamos。 But there was more than Los Alamos to the Manhattan Project， and George Koval， the subject of this book， was posted by the Army to Oak Ridge and Dayton， working as a safety officer， which allowed him free access to nearly every part of both top-secret facilities。 Koval passed on to the Soviets key information about polonium-based bomb initiators， which they used in their bombs。Koval had the distinction among the atomic secret-passers of being an actual Russian—but also an American。 Koval’s parents had left Russia before the Russian Revolution to escape virulent anti-Semitism。 They settled in Sioux City， Iowa， and George had a typical midwestern upbringing。 His parents were thrilled when the Tsar was ousted in the Russian Revolution and the new regime promised an end to anti-semitism。 In the 1930s， anti-semitism was on the rise in the US， and the Kovals decided to return to the USSR with their young sons， enticed by promises of a living paradise in the newly-created Jewish Autonomous Region。 （Given its location on the border with Manchuria， they shouldn’t have been so naïve， but that’s another story。）George Koval was a brilliant student of chemistry when World War II broke out， and he agreed to the call of Soviet military intelligence to return to the US on a “business trip。” That trip lasted eight years and a successful infiltration of the Manhattan Project。 George was perceptive enough to know that his cover was thin， and he fled back to the USSR in 1948， well before the feds suspected him。In the USSR， Koval struggled， as anti-semitism had made a big comeback。 Few knew of his key role in spying for the USSR， and he was never recognized in his lifetime。 US authorities， doubtless embarrassed by their failure to suspect him until he was long gone， didn’t publicize him either。 Now Hagedorn is telling his story and encouraging more research into Koval and his ring。Hagedorn has done a great deal of research to put together a picture of Koval， his life and his spy career。 But there just doesn’t seem to be enough information to make Koval truly come to life on the page。 Then it’s almost anti-climactic when Koval leaves the US before any pursuit and lives a small， unrecognized life in the USSR and post-Soviet Russia。While this book can’t be compared to Ben Macintyre’ s ability to make riveting stories of little-known characters in spydom， it’s still worth reading to learn about this previously-unknown piece of espionage history。 。。。more
Joel Mitchell
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This book promised to be “perfect for Ben Macintyre fans。” I loved Macintyre’s A Spy Among Friends and The Spy and the Traitor， so I had high expectations。 They were not met。This isn’t a terrible book， and if I hadn’t ever read a Ben Macintyre true spy story I may have given this a higher rating。 However， this is definitely second-tier compared to him。 The presentation is dry， the reconstruction of many events is not very tight/detailed， and the Amazon blurb gives away practically all the import This book promised to be “perfect for Ben Macintyre fans。” I loved Macintyre’s A Spy Among Friends and The Spy and the Traitor， so I had high expectations。 They were not met。This isn’t a terrible book， and if I hadn’t ever read a Ben Macintyre true spy story I may have given this a higher rating。 However， this is definitely second-tier compared to him。 The presentation is dry， the reconstruction of many events is not very tight/detailed， and the Amazon blurb gives away practically all the important information。 I feel like the author just didn’t have enough available information about this spy to write a compelling book。 On a positive note， it does provide interesting glimpses into the Manhattan project and the Red Scare。I don’t usually mind a dry history book， but Macintyre has spoiled me when it comes to spy stories， and so this one just didn’t cut it for me。 。。。more
Michael Richter
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