The FBI-KGB War: A Special Agent's Story

This is primarily an account of how the FBI busted an important segment of the Soviet spy network in America during the late 1940s and early 1950s. Lamphere was directly involved in the most sensational spy cases of the era. Judith Coplon, Klaus Fuchs, Harry Gold, David Greenglass, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are among those whose apprehension or conviction he had a hand in. (The author responds vigorously to the still-simmering charge that the Rosenbergs were framed by a witch-hunting FBI.) Lamphere reviews the devastating effect of the Philby-Maclean-Burgess spy scandal, and is critical of British intelligence for its naivete in the affair. Aside from the excitement the book generates on the spy-hunting level, it reveals much about the inner workings of the Bureau during an era when, as Lamphere notes, ""the FBI agent was king.'' Photos. Conservative Book Club dual main selection. (June 26)