The Real Spy's Guide to Becoming a Spy

by Peter Earnest, Suzanne Harper

Created by the founding executive director of the International Spy Museum, who is also a former operative in the CIA’s Clandestine Service, this is the official handbook for kids who dream of one day becoming a spy or working in the intelligence field.
 
Have you ever wondered what spies really do. What kind of training is involved? Do you have to go to a special school or take a polygraph test? How do you live your “cover”? How does your work life affect your relationships with your friends and family? Is there danger involved?
 
This fascinating, fact-filled book answers these questions and more while providing a historical timeline, definitions of key terms, suggestions for further reading, an index, quizzes, and exercises to see if you have the right spy stuff.

Genres: Nonfiction, Espionage

144 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Miquela]

kids give it 5 stars. :)

Some of the info was a bit repetitive, but I think the kids liked that since it helped reinforce ideas. A newer edition is probably in order, too, since things have certainly evolved since this one's publication. But it does mention 9/11, so it shows a hint of some of the big changes that have taken place since.

[Teghan]

Educational and fun I loved it!

[Yasas]

It is fun

[carrietracy]

The slick pages and cute graphics do little to disguise that this book means business. It is no light watered down guide to espionage. Instead it's a fact-filled guide that lays out what spies actually do. It's far more interesting as a guide to potential employment than anything else. At times it is repetitive, but ultimately it lays out a variety of careers within the "spy" world. Any adult's favorite part however will be Chapter 6 which explains to readers exactly what skills they need to cultivate in their lives right now in order to eventually be successful as a spy. This includes electing to take a foreign language at school (preferably from the list of more desirable languages such as Chinese, Arabic, etc), learning to chat up adults (even boring great-aunts), reading a variety of news sources and learning the points of debate.

Again, its content is often dense and factual although call out boxes do relate some humorous or interesting real spy stories.

[Rachel Frost]

Best book EVER! I absolutly loved it! It's the first spy related book I've ever read. I loved it SO much that I can't wait to pick up another one and get reading. I got the book for Christmas and I loved it so much that I just couldn't put it down!!
The author is a former worker of the CIA and the director of the International Spy Museum. This book answered all my questions about spies and what they do. I hope you chose to read it.

[Brenda]

Read this wonderful and informative book in 2 hours. While its not long, it is full of information about being a spy. I learned so much that it would be impossible to list it all here, without spoiling it. Needless to say, if you like suspense thrillers, spy movies/television/novels this book is for you.

[Lily]

I thought this book was very interesting! with so many facts about Spy's, but i wouldn't choose to read this book again it isn't my type!