FFB: The FBI: A Centennial History, 1908-2008

The FBI: A Centennial History, 1908-2008, is published by the U.S. Department of Justice, so you can rightly suspect it won't include Bureau controversies, scandals or missteps. But it does trace the agency's evolution from a makeshift band of 34 investigators to a full-fledged national security and intelligence agency with 30,000 special agents (many of whom have been killed in the line of duty).



There are overviews of the gangster years, World War II, the Cold War, espionage and terrorism, and synopses and 300 photos (some not previously shown to the public) from over 40 of the Bureau's best-known cases. You can also print a PDF of the book, and then, I suppose, put your laser-paper copy on your coffee table. If you'd prefer the glossy version, order it from the GAO office.