The Lockheed U-2 occupies a unique spot in both aerospace and military history. Operated by the US Air Force but property of the Central Intelligence Agency, the U-2 wrested technology from the military to put it into the hands of the fledgling intelligence community. The CIA wouldn’t be the lovable spy palace it is today if not for the Lockheed U-2. It’s development challenged the aerospace engineering world to produce a high flying, surveillance craft so that the US could spy on the Soviet Union. In order to achieve its mission requirements, it deviated from common military design practices. Quickly the U-2 made a name for itself gathering intelligence and in its high profile crash into the Soviet Union. While the development and operation provide noteworthy stories, it’s the people that drove this project who make the story great. In Monte Reel’s A Brotherhood of Spies from Doubleday Publishing, we learn how “four men working in secret, upended the Cold War and carved a new mission for the CIA.” Mr. Reel builds this well-researched, exquisitely written story around Edwin Land, Kelly Johnson, Richard Bissell, and Francis Gary Powers. I have never been as glued to a history book as I was to A Brotherhood of Spies. It read like a novel while being packed full of information and fascinating character sketches. I cannot recommend Mr. Reel’s book enough. A Brotherhood of Spies satisfied on all fronts: engineering, historical, political, and personal.

TL;DR

A Brotherhood of Spies is an information packed, readable history of the early days of the Cold War. 9.5/10 Highly Recommended!

From the Publisher

A thrilling dramatic narrative of the top-secret Cold War-era spy plane operation that transformed the CIA and brought the U.S. and the Soviet Union to the brink of disaster

On May 1, 1960, an American U-2 spy plane was shot down over the Soviet Union just weeks before a peace summit between the two nations. The CIA concocted a cover story for President Eisenhower to deliver, assuring him that no one could have survived a fall from that altitude. And even if pilot Francis Gary Powers had survived, he had been supplied with a poison pin with which to commit suicide.

But against all odds, Powers emerged from the wreckage and was seized by the KGB. He confessed to espionage charges, revealing to the world that Eisenhower had just lied to the American people–and to the Soviet Premier. Infuriated, Nikita Khrushchev slammed the door on a rare opening in Cold War relations.

In A Brotherhood of Spies, award-winning journalist Monte Reel reveals how the U-2 spy program, principally devised by four men working in secret, upended the Cold War and carved a new mission for the CIA. This secret fraternity, made up of Edwin Land, best known as the inventor of instant photography and the head of Polaroid Corporation; Kelly Johnson, a hard-charging taskmaster from Lockheed; Richard Bissell, the secretive and ambitious spymaster; and ace Air Force flyer Powers, set out to replace yesterday’s fallible human spies with tomorrow’s undetectable eye in the sky. Their clandestine successes and all-too-public failures make this brilliantly reported account a true-life thriller with the highest stakes and tragic repercussions.

A Brotherhood of Spies

A Brotherhood of Spies by Monte Reel uses the lives of four men to chart the course of the Lockheed U-2 project and also the early days of the Cold War. Each man is fascinating in his own right, but Mr. Reel delves further into the story. We get information about their families, their colleagues, their processes, their ambitions, and their preferred alcoholic drinks. The meticulous research that Mr. Reel did is evident in the sheer amount of information he provides us about each man, which made the history come alive for me. Of the four, I enjoyed reading about Edwin Land the most, but each was fascinating in his own right. Although the book focuses on these four men, the cast of characters is large but not overdone. Careful attention is paid to everyone that appears in this book. No one, even Nikita Khruschev – who in lesser hands would have been a mustache twirling villian – got the one dimensional treatment.

Francis Gary Power

Francis Gary Powers, the downed U-2 pilot who was also jailed by the Soviet Union, receives a compassionate portrait in A Brotherhood of Spies. The public and the government treated Powers like a traitor after the incident, and his life never recovered. Since he didn’t suicide and destroy the plane, he failed his mission according to public perception. In reality, he reacted as most people would, and the derision he received was too harsh. Mr. Reel portrayed him fairly and justly by telling Powers story with the high level of scrutiny it needed. The US traded a Soviet spy for Powers, and the movie Bridge of Spies starring Tom Hanks, portrayed half of the other side of Powers trade. Mr. Reel tells Powers side of the story here in A Brotherhood of Spies with much needed perspective.

Research

I loved this book from page one to the end. The notes are extensive and thorough, but the bibliography shines. Mr. Reel provided a bibliography that is long and filled with enticing works. In a world where I’m rich with nothing to do, I’d read through that list. It gave me a number of potential reads to scratch my Cold War itch. Because the research is so thorough, the book exudes information on each page. Before A Brotherhood of Spies, I didn’t know how the Groom Lake test facility started. Throughout the book, Mr. Reel covers the U-2s usage throughout Cold War history and under different presidents, and due to the extensive research, it feels as if Mr. Reel lived through the time itself.

Writing

At the beginning of my copy, the publisher asked that reviewers use no direct quotes until the final copy is published. This frustrated me because the book is very quotable. The writing deserves to be excerpted and shared, but I will respect the publisher’s wishes. Even though this is a history book, it read like a memoir written in third person perspective. The narrative hooked me and delivered information without losing tension. I raced home from work to finish the last bits of this book, and I already placed this near the top of my re-read list. Mr. Reel didn’t just convey information in A Brotherhood of Spies; he told the story of the aircraft and the men who brought into being. I tell anyone who enjoys fiction that this is the nonfiction book for them.

Conclusion

A Brotherhood of Spies leads the non-fiction stack for book of the year for me. It and The Gone World are competing for best book, and the calendar says there’s nine months left in the year. Mr. Reel created a compassionate, holistic look at the America during the Cold War by focusing on the U-2 and the four men who drove its creation and notoriety. A Brotherhood of Spies hooked me from opening and held on till the last sentence. It scratched the itch for a spy thriller while providing historical perspective on tense times in the US’s history. This highly readable account of the development of one of America’s longest operating intelligence gathering aircraft should be widely read. I loved A Brotherhood of Spies and think you will too. Highly recommended!

9.5 out of 10

A Brotherhood of Spies goes on sale May 8, 2018.