Spy, Spy Again: True Tales of Failed Espionage

by Tina Holdcroft

Even spies can have a bad day. History teaches us that countries devote tremendous amounts of time and resources to spying on their perceived enemies. However, even the most carefully thought-out and well-financed top-secret plans can fail. In fact, they are often foiled by something beyond a spy's control, something impossible to have predicted, such The 20 stories in Spy, Spy Again take readers on a bumpy ride through history, exposing excruciating tales of espionage botched by bad luck, rotten timing, miscommunication, incompetence, hubris and betrayal. Whether set in Ancient China or Ancient India, during the Cold War or World War II, these stories of suspense and intrigue will captivate readers. Tina Holdcroft's incisive graphic narrative and delightfully witty illustrations make these accounts of failed spies come to life.

Genres: Nonfiction

112 pages, Paperback

First published March 10, 2011

Reviews

[Berna · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 stars rounded up to 4.
A very fun middle grade book about failed spy missions. I learned lots of things which I knew nothing about.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Holdcroft, Tina. (2011). Spy, spy again: True tales of espionage. Toronto: Annick Press.

*2012 Diamond Willow Award Nominee

Espionage – intriguing, exciting, sometimes a complete disaster! This is a collection of 20 tales of failed espionage. Where the spy gets it all wrong and often “gets it” in the end. Each section starts out with an introduction describing the events and background. Then the rest is told in a comic book style. The illustrations do a great job of conveying the key ideas and feelings that may have been felt at the time.

I liked this book mainly because it felt like it was the backstory to many things I had heard of before but did not know very much about. I took the opportunity to look into further details on a few of the stories. It always amazes me how when you learn about something, how often you see and hear about it later. For example, after reading and researching the information that was in the story “Asinine Assassination,” I learned about the terracotta army buried in a farmer’s field. Since then, I have heard of this many times. Interesting!

The language is difficult and the ideas are complex. I found that because the content was so complex, the author had to really muddy up the pages to get all of the information in with maps, arrows, and little boxes with information to clarify the story. Each page is so busy, it will be overwhelming to some students. This is not a book for struggling readers. It is however very interesting. It led to many further searches for information which is excellent for students to broaden their minds.

I would recommend this book for good readers in grades four and up through eight.

[Cemeread]

This colorful book is mix of comic type drawings and text with enough interesting stories and facts to keep reader’s engaged. You might not even realize you learned some history too. It covers ancient civilizations through 1985 and includes Greenpeace, Russian submarines, captured spies, and just plain bad plans. Of course spies sometimes have short lives so deaths are also mentioned, but nothing is graphic. The how hard can it be chapter is one parents may want to preview for younger readers as it mentions Mata Hari and describes how she was able to attract people to try and learn their secrets. There aren’t any details, but there may be a few questions after reading it.

Bottom Line: This book will appeal to anyone interested in spies. With colorful panels and short stretches of text it’s perfect for a browsing or reluctant reader looking for short interesting stories as well. It’s written with a slant towards boys, but girls can enjoy it also, I did. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself wanting to share the remarkable stories with others.

[Angela · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this slim volume because I love true spy stories but, unfortunately, the format ruined it. The author hopes to engage younger, perhaps reluctant readers, by telling these adventures in a graphic novel or comic book type format. The problem however is that the narrative is choppy and the layout zooms all over the page making the action/story hard to follow. Many of the characters are drawn very similar which adds to the confusion. Some of the points and especially the selection of the stories were very good but the execution made the book ultimately unenjoyable for me.

[Ilib4kids · Rating 4 out of 5]

J327.12 HOL