An Exceptional Accomplishment

Ghost Wars may prove to be the best book I read in 2013. It tells the story of the CIA's involvement in Afghanistan from the Soviet Invasion to the terror attacks in 2001. But that's not all it is. You will meet the directors of the CIA and see how their personalities influence the agency. You will learn about the Washington political climate under different presidencies and see how they cripple any potential to cure Afghanistan of its extremism. You will watch how the outcast younger son of a prominent family, named Osama bin Laden, sets up an empire in the ruined countryside.

The writing avoids analysis until the end, letting you examine events as they unfold with amazing clarity and detail. The narration is crisp and exciting without being overly-dramatized. When the wrap up finally comes it is stunning and insightful. This is an amazing book, filled with knowledge, rich storytelling, and thoughtfulness. You deserve to read it.

40 people found this helpful

A PAINFUL RELIVING OF THE RUN-UP TO 9/11

Mistakes were made, by Bush 41, Clinton and Bush 43. Bush 41's policies put the Taliban in charge of Afghanistan, Clinton kept them there and Bush 43 was distracted by a VP and a Condi who were uninformed and uninterested. We armed the "resistance" fighters and abandoned them when the "resistance" got rid of the Russians. We relied on biased, self-serving "intelligence" from Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, both countries supported the Taliban. We gave millions to Pakistan, much of which was diverted to personal accounts, and succeeded in tipping the balance toward the military intelligence side and away from the civil executive/legislative side, destabilizing a nuclear power.

Were there good outcomes? Well, the Russian economy imploded, the Berlin Wall fell and the Soviet Republic disintegrated. Would the Wall have fallen anyway? Maybe. We'll never know.

Good news? The Cold War was over. Bad news? We entered the era of terrorism. We don't know how this era will end but, thanks to this book, we know how it began.

Painful, depressing great read.

25 people found this helpful

Required Reading

What made the experience of listening to Ghost Wars the most enjoyable?

Like many others, I want to understand how the United States got into the current mess in Afghanistan. This is the first book I've read that provides, in a truly in depth and objective manner. the always ignored back story. Anyone who cares to voice an opinion on future policy decisions in the Middle East should be familiar with this book. The author's objective presentation makes the story just that much harder to hear.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The author's cold blooded description of the myriad ways in which the United States was manipulated by Pakistan and Saudi Arabia for more than 20 years.

Have you listened to any of Malcolm Hillgartner’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have,and enjoy his narration. For some reason however, in the first half of this book, sentences were often clipped off at the end, giving the reading a sort of chopped off sound. This problem seemed to disappear in the second half of the book.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. I actually spent more than 6 months listening to this book, mostly in the car, and I'm glad I took the time to go through it slowly. The tragedy builds slowly, piece by piece, until the eve of 9/11.

Any additional comments?

No book since a "Bright, Shining Lie" by Neil Sheehan has made a greater impression on me in terms of historical understanding.

16 people found this helpful

great book, minor recording/narrating flaws

What made the experience of listening to Ghost Wars the most enjoyable?

great story telling, accurate and abundant information, unbiased reporting.

What aspect of Malcolm Hillgartner’s performance would you have changed?

the russian helicopter in the book is a Mil-17, through out the read, he reads it as an MiG 17. for someone with a decent military hardware background, it drove me nuts. couple of other similar misuse of technical terms.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

no

Any additional comments?

glitches in the recording, skipped lines and sentences. could be a bad burn to CD...

14 people found this helpful

An excellent, eye-opening listen

This is an excellent choice for any fan of history. It is wonderfully detailed, clearly written and read, and totally engaging. If you are hoping to study this subject intently, I would recommend getting the actual book because the names can be easily muddled as the setting shifts around the globe.

3 people found this helpful

Excellent Modern History

This narrative is an absolute education in the roots of radical Islamist terrorism. As someone who was a teenager during the GWOT but too young to have comprehended the global terror threat (or even know the term "al Queda") before 9/11 brought it screaming into my consciousness, this book was an excellent way to educate myself on the causes and complications of the past 15 years of war. The story, like the terror threat, is global and teeming with distinct characters. It is heartbreaking to watch the CIA, National Security, and State Dept officials wrestle with they dilemnas that they did, only to realize the inevitablity of some of their choices(they would only have chosen differently if they had known about 9/11 years prior to its occurance), and the confounding arbitrariness of others.
Superb narration and engaging writing style throughout.

3 people found this helpful

Fascinating background to 9/11

What was one of the most memorable moments of Ghost Wars?

Interesting detail of how first the US and Saudi Arabia supported the taliban, and later how Pakistan supported the Taliban and Bin Laden.

3 people found this helpful

Outstanding

This is a wonderfully researched book. I listened to this and The Looming Tower in quick succession. I found it to be the far better of the two. Coll is insightful and is very careful to not overstep or over-interpret his source material. I find him trustworthy and honest and evenhanded. He is also a gifted writer. It was a great listen and was well performed by Malcolm Hillgartner.

6 people found this helpful

Interesting, in-depth book

This book offers a very in-depth look at U.S. involvement in Afghanistan prior to 9/11. The story comes across as factual and well-documented; I did not pick up any noticeable traces of a political ideology, just a well-reported story based on facts as presented by the author. The book is well read by Malcolm Hilgartner, to the extent that I would be more likely to purchase an audio book if he is the narrator. The technical production of the book is slightly lacking in a few spots where the audio stops abruptly and restarts, but overall it sounds good and I don't think anything is missed due to these small annoyances.

9 people found this helpful

Audiobook Cuts Off Sentences Often

The book was slow to start and the narrator felt a bit staccato. I found it difficult to pay attention. Eventually the narration improved to a more natural sounding rhythm, though the writing still did not draw me in overall. There are definitely some interesting stories within the text, but overall it was a challenge to get through. This was exacerbated by the fact that many sentences cut off part way through, leaving you too wonder how much you missed before the next sentence or paragraph abruptly started.

Overall - alright narration and story, but not superb. It has been my worst audible experience thus far, though I have listened to several good stories in the few months I have subscribed. Perhaps this would have been better to read as a regular book.

1 person found this helpful