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19th out of 65 books
—
39 voters
The Company We Keep: A Husband-and-Wife True-Life Spy Story
Robert Baer was known inside the CIA as perhaps the best operative working the Middle East. Over several decades he served everywhere from Iraq to New Delhi and racked up such an impressive list of accomplishments that he was eventually awarded the Career Intelligence Medal. But if his career was everything a spy might aspire to, his personal life was a brutal illustration...more
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published
March 8th 2011
by Crown
(first published January 1st 2011)
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I generally read spy memoirs as they are an interestiong between two of my favorite non-fiction genres: true crime and military history. This one I was partly also intersted in due to Baer's fairly frequent appearance as a guest commentator on TV and his inspiration to the film "Syriana". This book did not disappoint from lacking in intrigue and action since it is a very human, compelling husband-wife autobiography about being in the CIA and trying to outlive. Like "Honor Thy Father", the book i...more
An exciting look into the life of a couple CIA agents in the 80’s and 90’s. Robert & Dayna Baer tell their stories in alternating chapters. Each chapter tells the location and who’s narrating. Dayna was married to a judge and leading a rather unfulfilling life until she decides to join the CIA. She describes her training – first failing, then overcoming the course – describes her first assignment performing background checks on job applicants, and finally to field work in the former Yugoslav...more
From Publishers Weekly
Robert and Dayna Baer's initial meeting was slightly unusual—both were on a covert mission in Sarajevo for the CIA. In this intermittently intriguing memoir, they describe their careers in "the Company," their romance, and the difficulty they have in establishing a balanced life outside the world of secret agents. Their travels take them to interesting places in interesting times—from Bosnia and Lebanon during civil wars, to Syria under the Assads, the mansions of sheiks,
...more
I’ve read a couple of books by Robert Baer, and liked them very much, so I was eager to read this memoir by him and his wife about their time together in the CIA, both before and after they got together. (Robert Baer is the author of Sleeping with the Devil, The Devil We Know and See No Evil, which was the basis for the George Clooney movie Syriana.)
Bob and Dayna take turns narrating as they each literally go all over the map from one hotspot to another. Before they got together, they were going...more
Bob and Dayna take turns narrating as they each literally go all over the map from one hotspot to another. Before they got together, they were going...more
This was not up to Robert Baer's usual quality. The book is not cohesive. Sometimes it seems like the author is name-dropping, bragging, and showing off. Motivations are unclear; for example, while Robert and Dayna Baer indicate that working for the Company destroyed their previous marriages, they don't show how that happened other than noting that they were separated from their spouses for a long time. Some incidents are described in excruciating detail while elsewhere, the events of several ye...more
I generally read spy memoirs as they are an interestiong between two of my favorite non-fiction genres: true crime and military history. This one I was partly also intersted in due to Baer's fairly frequent appearance as a guest commentator on TV and his inspiration to the film "Syriana". This book did not disappoint from lacking in intrigue and action since it is a very human, compelling husband-wife autobiography about being in the CIA and trying to outlive. Like "Honor Thy Father", the book i...more
I generally read spy memoirs as they are an interestiong between two of my favorite non-fiction genres: true crime and military history. This one I was partly also intersted in due to Baer's fairly frequent appearance as a guest commentator on TV and his inspiration to the film "Syriana". This book did not disappoint from lacking in intrigue and action since it is a very human, compelling husband-wife autobiography about being in the CIA and trying to outlive. Like "Honor Thy Father", the book i...more
I generally read spy memoirs as they are an interestiong between two of my favorite non-fiction genres: true crime and military history. This one I was partly also intersted in due to Baer's fairly frequent appearance as a guest commentator on TV and his inspiration to the film "Syriana". This book did not disappoint from lacking in intrigue and action since it is a very human, compelling husband-wife autobiography about being in the CIA and trying to outlive. Like "Honor Thy Father", the book i...more
I generally read spy memoirs as they are an interestiong between two of my favorite non-fiction genres: true crime and military history. This one I was partly also intersted in due to Baer's fairly frequent appearance as a guest commentator on TV and his inspiration to the film "Syriana". This book did not disappoint from lacking in intrigue and action since it is a very human, compelling husband-wife autobiography about being in the CIA and trying to outlive. Like "Honor Thy Father", the book i...more
May 22, 2011
Jack Cheng
added it
Most jobs are boring. Even being a spy can be boring. The problem is that each person knows only one little bit of the plot and thus there is no overall story structure.
On the other hand, how often do you get to read about what the CIA really does?
The first half of this book gives a good account in both authors' voices of their work for the Agency. Bob is established and spends his time taking meetings with random European and Middle Eastern contacts. ]
Dayna's story is more interesting as she de...more
On the other hand, how often do you get to read about what the CIA really does?
The first half of this book gives a good account in both authors' voices of their work for the Agency. Bob is established and spends his time taking meetings with random European and Middle Eastern contacts. ]
Dayna's story is more interesting as she de...more
Apr 27, 2011
Kathleen Hagen
added it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2011-nonfiction,
2011-audio-books
The Company we Keep: a Husband and Wife’s True Life Spy Story, by Robert and Dayna Baer,narrated by the authors, produced by Random House Audio, downloaded from audible.com.
Robert Baer was known inside the CIA as perhaps the best operative working the Middle East. But if his career was all that a spy might aspire to, his personal
life was a brutal illustration of everything a spy is asked to sacrifice. Dayna Williamson thought of herself as just an ordinary California girl. But
she was always look...more
Robert Baer was known inside the CIA as perhaps the best operative working the Middle East. But if his career was all that a spy might aspire to, his personal
life was a brutal illustration of everything a spy is asked to sacrifice. Dayna Williamson thought of herself as just an ordinary California girl. But
she was always look...more
Robert Baer was probably the best CIA spy that the United States had that handled the Middle East. This was the time when this area was literally a powder keg. The book tells of his experiences in this area and how he befriended people that would help him gather information.
Dayna Williamson was a recent college graduate and wanted more out of life and found that the CIA offered her the excitement and intrigue she desired.
Dayna started at a very mundane job within the CIA but was offered the posi...more
Dayna Williamson was a recent college graduate and wanted more out of life and found that the CIA offered her the excitement and intrigue she desired.
Dayna started at a very mundane job within the CIA but was offered the posi...more
I really enjoyed this book. It's an easy read and filled with stories about CIA operatives Robert and Dayna Baer. I was intrigued by their day-to-day lives and the challenges that they faced working abroad on specific tasks while working with somewhat ambiguous characters. They both sacrificed their first marriages for their work in the CIA. When they meet "on the job" and realize that they are in love, they make a commitment not to repeat that mistake again.
After leaving the CIA, Bob became a...more
After leaving the CIA, Bob became a...more
Robert Baer was known inside the CIA as perhaps the best operative working the Middle East. Over several decades he served everywhere from Iraq to New Delhi and racked up such an impressive list of accomplishments that he was eventually awarded the Career Intelligence Medal. But if his career was everything a spy might aspire to, his personal life was a brutal illustration of everything a spy is asked to sacrifice. Bob had few enduring non-work friendships, only contacts and acquaintances. His p...more
Mar 07, 2012
Philip
rated it
1 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
espionage,
audiobooks
Thought it would be interesting to hear a spy story told by a husband and wife team -- but boy, was I wrong. Baer accomplishes the near-impossible by making the life of a spy actually sound boring. It didn't help that he and his wife recorded the audiobook themselves. Baer's narration was somnambulant and nearly put me to sleep as well, reading every sentence with the same inflection. I know he's written other books that have been well-reviewed, and have seen him as a talking head on CNN and oth...more
This is an engaging, easy read about two Americans in the CIA. Each author has a voice, writing alternate chapters. Bob Baer is an experienced CIA operative, working in war torn arenas around the world. Dayna Baer (not yet married to Bob) works in Los Angeles as part of the CIA team that investigates new recruits backgrounds. Bobs’ adventures include finding dental care for himself in a country that doesn’t have any dentist and living with Russians, once an American enemy. Dayna is selected to t...more
While I definitely enjoyed reading the book and getting a realistic insight into what spying is really all about, it felt more like a anthropological experience than a "true-life spy story of a husband-and-wife." These spies are a completely different breed, and though their whole purpose as a spy has been to stay off the radar, a main theme of this book is the couple's attempts to reconnect with the world and put down roots. There are some great stories and experiences in this novel, but they d...more
Maybe I would have liked this better if the authors had been posted to places other than Central Asia and the parts of the Middle East (Syria, Lebanon, Iraq) where internal conflict seems endless, sectarian and unchanging. Or if I could have kept the chronology straight, which is difficult given the alternating chapter authorship. Now it's the late 80s, now it's the mid 90s, now the U.S. is getting ready to invade Iraq so I think it's 2003 but no! it's the first Gulf war instead.
Still, I learned...more
Still, I learned...more
Enjoyed the book. My partner who read it first found it disjointed (as other reviewers have noted) and suggested I not bother reading it. I decided to give it a try and quite liked it.
The story or selected memoir is told from the viewpoints of two spies who eventually become man and wife. The location of the chapter and the person whose perspective is being portrayed is listed at the beginning of each chapter so there wasn't any guessing required. Despite the fact that it did jump from person to...more
The story or selected memoir is told from the viewpoints of two spies who eventually become man and wife. The location of the chapter and the person whose perspective is being portrayed is listed at the beginning of each chapter so there wasn't any guessing required. Despite the fact that it did jump from person to...more
I generally read spy memoirs as they are an interestiong between two of my favorite non-fiction genres: true crime and military history. This one I was partly also intersted in due to Baer's fairly frequent appearance as a guest commentator on TV and his inspiration to the film "Syriana". This book did not disappoint from lacking in intrigue and action since it is a very human, compelling husband-wife autobiography about being in the CIA and trying to outlive. Like "Honor Thy Father", the book i...more
This non-fiction work by Bob and Dayna Baer, recounting some of their experiences as CIA operatives, is a good look inside of a whole other kind of existence, one most Americans never even think about.
Bob Baer, who has written other accounts of his time as a CIA operative (his previous work was made into the George Clooney movie, Syriana), alternates chapters with his now-wife, Dayna, as they wound their way through the excruciatingly complicated world of modern-day espionage.
Dayna's chapters...more
Bob Baer, who has written other accounts of his time as a CIA operative (his previous work was made into the George Clooney movie, Syriana), alternates chapters with his now-wife, Dayna, as they wound their way through the excruciatingly complicated world of modern-day espionage.
Dayna's chapters...more
My mother recommended me to read this book, so I got around to read this book. In the beginning, it took a while to get a hang of plot between two people - Bob and Dayna before they met. I got a glimpse of what it was like to be a CIA operative if not much of details being shared due to CIA reviewed the book to ensure that there weren't any classified and sensitive information being exposed. To summary up the couple of themes from the book, their first marriage has been fell apart and they were...more
I was expecting a mushy, trite description of two spies falling in love, but what I got was much heavier on the espionage and lighter on the romance. Which is good! I mean, for me. I'm not saying that by the end of the book the two spies aren't making plans to settle down and adopt a baby, I'm just saying there's a distinct lack of goo-goo eyes and overwrought, cliche-ridden prose describing a love that knows no bounds. These spies keep it REAL.
It's not a straight through-line, the story is tol...more
It's not a straight through-line, the story is tol...more
I was expecting a mushy, trite description of two spies falling in love, but what I got was much heavier on the espionage and lighter on the romance. Which is good! I mean, for me. I'm not saying that by the end of the book the two spies aren't making plans to settle down and adopt a baby, I'm just saying there's a distinct lack of goo-goo eyes and overwrought, cliche-ridden prose describing a love that knows no bounds. These spies keep it REAL.
It's not a straight through-line, the story is tol...more
It's not a straight through-line, the story is tol...more
I wanted to like this book. And there were parts of it I definitely did like. I liked it enough to finish it. However, the writing was seriously flawed.
First what I did like: I liked the action. I like all of the tradecraft they talked about. I loved the descriptions of the various areas of the world that they visited. They actually made me want to visit places like Sarajevo and Tajikistan. That was cool.
What was not cool: The writing was a sort of stream of consciousness. And as a result, there...more
First what I did like: I liked the action. I like all of the tradecraft they talked about. I loved the descriptions of the various areas of the world that they visited. They actually made me want to visit places like Sarajevo and Tajikistan. That was cool.
What was not cool: The writing was a sort of stream of consciousness. And as a result, there...more
Jun 05, 2012
Lance Charnes
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Fans of true-espionage tales
Shelves:
nonfiction-crime-espionage
The my-life-in-espionage genre spectrum has two ends: disillusioned-true-believer-tell-all and my-so-called-life-as-a-spy. This is the fourth book I've read recently in this genre and one of the more engaging, mostly on the strength of the authors' voices.
Yes, "authors": both halves of this now-husband-and-wife spy duo write alternating chapters telling how they entered the CIA, the places they went and things they did, how they met, and how they adapted to the "real world" once they left the Ag...more
Yes, "authors": both halves of this now-husband-and-wife spy duo write alternating chapters telling how they entered the CIA, the places they went and things they did, how they met, and how they adapted to the "real world" once they left the Ag...more
4.5 stars. I won this book through the First Reads program and started reading very soon after I received it. The authors are former CIA operatives, telling stories from their time in the CIA and how this work affected their lives - few lasting friendships, family lives a mess. Eventually, their work led them to each other, and they fell in love, got married, and tried to start new lives together outside of the CIA.
This memoir definitely covers a much different situation than most memoirs you ca...more
This memoir definitely covers a much different situation than most memoirs you ca...more
If this book had not been lying around the house I would not have sought it out. Spies working for the CIA are not of particular interest to me. But I knew so little about the topic that this book was a revelation. The format is very readable. Two CIA employees tell their stories in alternate chapters. The fact that they eventually meet and marry adds a personal touch to the otherwise grim and gritty details of their assignments in some of the world’s most volatile countries. Much of the time th...more
This book is for someone who is inquisitive about regular CIA life for an operative. If you are looking for a thrilling spy novel then perhaps a work of fiction would be a better choice. Overall, I enjoyed this book. There was enough intrigue and danger to keep me interested. Surprisingly, it confirmed rather than dispelled depictions written in typical spy novels, sans the necessary romanticized aspect of any good fictional novel.
It was a bit choppy with many underdeveloped anecdotes. I'm certa...more
It was a bit choppy with many underdeveloped anecdotes. I'm certa...more
Real life married spies! Sounds exciting, but isn't so much, because by the time they decide to settle down together, they're out of the field. Each Baer alternates chapters, even after they've met and moved in together, which contributes to the general disjointedness of the narrative. And it is disjointed, partly because they each get sent hither and yon. Sometimes their mission is clear - or they can guess at what it is - and sometimes they don't really know. Most of the time they don't know h...more
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