Hunting the American Terrorist: The FBI's War on Homegrown Terror

by Terry Turchie, Kathleen M. Puckett

The bombs were perfect. The metal he'd so painstakingly cast glimmered in the dim light of the cabin. The hickory wood on the flipper switch was smooth and well shaped. The chemical compound had been perfected, and the target selected. All that remained was to wrap them in heavy paper and add the addresses and the stamps. After a hiatus of over six years from his deadly mission, he was ready to remind them all of them, all the unconscious drones in the technological nightmare the country had become that he was still here, still dangerous, still watching them. And so worked the dark mind of the most elusive man in the history of the FBI. For sixteen years he stayed ahead of them. The old techniques in the Bureau just didn't work any more, at least for this kind of mind. It was time to change the rules and time to find the right type of people to change them. The book written by the people who changed the rules on the run takes you on the chase for the dark minds of Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber and Eric Rudolph. Dr. Puckett, the clinical psychologist who played such a vital role in the capture of those men also peers into the mind of Timothy McVeigh to provide an analysis to better understand the mindset of the domestic terrorist. This title will be available July 14th.

Genres: History, True Crime, Crime, Nonfiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published September 5, 2006

Reviews

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm the co-author of this book, and I'm giving it five stars! :-)

[Christie Bane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was written by two of the FBI agents involved with the hunt and capture of the Unabomber. It started a little slow, and at times read more like a description of the daily work life of an FBI agent than like the gripping thriller it turned into once I got fifty or so pages in. Having spent some time as a federal employee, I found the description of federal employee life very familiar (even though these guys are at a much higher level than I ever was) and fairly entertaining. They had to take some unorthodox paths in locating the Unabomber, such as agreeing to his demand to publish his writings in the media in order to get him to stop bombing. (Note: They never believed he would stop bombing. They just agreed to publish his words in the hopes that someone, somewhere, would be able to identify him from the words that he wrote, and that is pretty much what happened.)

The book does not only describe the hunt and capture of the Unabomber, a fascinating and dramatic story on its own. It also includes a behavioral analysis of what is referred to as the "Lone Wolf" terrorist, a type of killer of which the Unabomber was the most well-known example. The book also describes several other Lone Wolves, including Eric Rudolph and Timothy McVeigh. It offers a fascinating look into the twisted and tortured minds of those individuals who are unable to have normal social relationships and end up committing horrific acts out of commitment to ideology. No one really knows HOW these individuals develop, although there are many characteristics they share with each other. The chief characteristic they share is inability to belong with any other groups or really any individuals either.

This is a great book for anyone who wants to read about the inner workings of the FBI, a manhunt for a notorious killer, or the psychology of some seriously disturbed individuals.

[Saul · Rating 3 out of 5]

My only big criticism is that the writing style is a bit uneven, but that's understandable having been penned by different FBI agents who were involved directly with the cases under discussion. Nonetheless, it's a fascinating read, and offers insight into cases where lone wolf terrorists threatened the security of the US.

[Allison Thurman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as in depth as I would have hoped, but it's a quick introduction to the psychology of the "lone wolf" terrorist (Kazynski, McVeigh, Rudolph).

[Pamela Hudson · Rating 5 out of 5]

These profilers are brilliant. This book reads as excitingly as any top- notch fiction crime thriller and is as well written I recommend it highly

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! I loved this book!

[Jerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read five books, numerous articles on the Unabomber, and his Manifesto (if Dr. Puckett were profiling me, she would probably include OCD as a characteristic :) ), My interest was peaked when I started watching Manhunt Unabomber on the Discovery Channel, a series that in my opinion is about 98% fiction and disrespects the members of the Unabomber Task Force.

If you are interested in the Unabomber case and in profiling I would recommend you read this book. I found Dr. Puckett's Part 2 interesting and informative.