Ghost Wars and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more

Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
or
Amazon Prime free trial required. Sign up when you check out. Learn more
Buy Used
Used - Good See details
Price: £5.12

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
or
Get a £0.25 Amazon.co.uk Gift Card
Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden
 
 
Start reading Ghost Wars on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden [Paperback]

Steve Coll
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
RRP: £12.99
Price: £9.09 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £3.90 (30%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In stock.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.
Want guaranteed delivery by Thursday, June 7? Choose Express delivery at checkout. See Details

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition £9.99  
Paperback £9.09  
Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details.

Frequently Bought Together

Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan and Bin Laden + Taliban: The Power of Militant Islam in Afghanistan and Beyond + Descent into Chaos: The world's most unstable region and the threat to global security
Price For All Three: £23.77

Show availability and delivery details

Buy the selected items together


Product details

  • Paperback: 736 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin (3 Mar 2005)
  • Language Unknown
  • ISBN-10: 0141020806
  • ISBN-13: 978-0141020808
  • Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 13 x 3.6 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 35,253 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Steve Coll
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.

Visit Amazon's Steve Coll Page

Product Description

Review

"Certainly the finest historical narrative so far on the origins of al Qaeda in the post-Soviet rubble of Afghanistan . . . "Ghost Wars" provides fresh details and helps explain the motivations behind many crucial decisions."
-"The New York Times Book Review"

Product Description

The news-breaking book that has sent schockwaves through the White House, Ghost Wars is the most accurate and revealing account yet of the CIA's secret involvement in al-Qaeada's evolution.

Prize-winning journalist Steve Coll has spent years reporting from the Middle East, accessed previously classified government files and interviewed senior US officials and foreign spymasters. Here he gives the full inside story of the CIA's covert funding of an Islamic jihad against Soviet forces in Afghanistan, explores how this sowed the seeds of bn Laden's rise, traces how he built his global network and brings to life the dramatic battles within the US government over national security. Above all, he lays bare American intelligence's continual failure to grasp the rising threat of terrrorism in the years leading to 9/11 - and its devastating consequences.


Inside This Book (Learn More)
First Sentence
IT WAS A SMALL RIOT in a year of upheavals, a passing thunderclap disgorged by racing skies. Read the first page
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Search inside this book:

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(3)
(2)
(1)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
No doubt about it 8 Feb 2011
Format:Paperback
.
`Ghost Wars' is a well researched book with abundant footnotes supporting every detail. With so many Arab figures, the author wisely provides a list to allow the reader to keep track of who is who -- though a complicated read it is easy to follow. He exposes the CIAs failures in the days leading up to 9/11, while on the other hand, he eradicates many misconceptions of the CIA including rumors it often works for the enemy. This is an open and honest book of what is for the most part a closed and clandestine organization. Bravo!

Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA is an appropriate partner for this book as it defines the environment it operates in. Another well researched book by a former CIA agent Murder in the Vatican: The CIA and the Bolshevik Pontiff does a riveting job explaining why the anti-American Pope who preceded the Polish Pope survived only 33 days in the Vatican.

Get `Ghost Wars' in hardcover for your permanent collection.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
EXPLOSIVE READING 30 Sep 2008
By Foxylock TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
This literary masterpiece from Pulitzer prize winning author Steve Coll will blow your mind.The apparent relentless and exhaustive research that made this book shows Colls dedication to bringing the full story to the reader.Beginning with the US support of the Afghan fighters during the Soviet invasion and finishing just days before the attacks on 9/11 Coll will take you on a mind boggling journey encompassing delicate matters such as:the US support of the taliban,the CIA attempts to buy back Stinger missiles it had given to the Mujaheddin for $150,000 apiece!! hare brained and expensive attempts to remove Osama Bin Laden and constant policy changes and in-fighting within the CIA.Throw in the main characters:an impeached president,a president with no clue on foriegn policy,tribal leaders more concerned with personal enrichment than the liberation of their people and radical jihadists like Osama the world hide and seek champion!!Add to this mix the ineptitude of the CIA and you have an extremely interesting plot.Read this book for the story and you will become more informed on the origins of al-Qaeda,the history of Afghanistan and the entanglement of the US government.Study this book and you will see layer upon layer of CIA incompetence,could 9/11 have been prevented?
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Julie
Format:Paperback
I like spy non-fiction and selected this book after finding out that Barack Obama read this during his presidential campaign. The book is beyond expectations, with a complete overview and seemingly a true account of what happened in Afghanistan during the 80's and 90's. The book is very well written and the details brought about by Steve Coll are fantastic.
Comment | 
Was this review helpful to you?
Most Recent Customer Reviews
skullduggery indeed!
cant think of a better book than this! exposes the cia in all its bungling glory. very informative it takes you on a crazy journey! well worth a read
Published 5 months ago by matt regan
Kindle more expensive than paperback
Downloaded the sample to my Kindle and enjoyed it. When I went to buy the book, discovered it was cheaper in paperback. Off to the bookstore.
Published 11 months ago by Aproprose
A Fine Example of Research
The author grasps the attention of the scholar with his narrative and analyses backed by key sources. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Panagiotis Dimitrakis
Amazingly Informative and swept up.
I managed to get hold of a pre-publication proof copy (Is that the CIA I hear knocking at my door?) It is full of information and relatively fluid. Read more
Published 19 months ago by A. S. Edwards
Poor digitisation
This is a wonderful book and fully worthy of five stars. However, and this is an irritating however, the publisher has been extremely sloppy with the digitisation. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Ageing Rocker
Can't Imagine this Subject Covered Better Than This
Superb book. In a genre which attracts too many opportunistic third hand accounts, I was looking for an authoritive, well referenced work on this important chapter in recent... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Brian S. Meredith
Outstanding
I do not have much to add to what has already been written about this book, suffice to say that it is an outstanding education on the events involving the CIA taking place in... Read more
Published on 26 May 2010 by Marmaduke Gentle
Hard work but worth it
Make no mistake this is a dense book, thoroughly researched and well deserving its Pullitzer. Not for the faint hearted it has a cast of characters worthy of a Hollywood... Read more
Published on 10 April 2010 by Biffo Twang
A Good Read
An excellent read if a little dated now.

But it gives the reader an insight into the 'Twighlight' world of the CIA etc.
Published on 4 Mar 2010 by P. Waller
A must read
One of the best books I have read in a long time. Using first hand accounts the author pieces together the complex history and the relationsips between the US/Pakistan and... Read more
Published on 30 Nov 2008 by Mr Mojo
Search Customer Reviews
Only search this product's reviews

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums


Listmania!


Look for similar items by category


Look for similar items by subject


Feedback


Amazon.co.uk Privacy Statement Amazon.co.uk Delivery Information Amazon.co.uk Returns & Exchanges