For Lust of Knowing; Memoirs of an Intelligence Officer

Roosevelt, Archie

ISBN 10: 0316756008 / ISBN 13: 9780316756006

Published by Little, Brown and Company, Boston, MA, 1988

About this Item

xvii, [1], 500 pages. Maps. Illustrations. Index . Small tears and chips to DJ edges. Some soiling to DJ. Presentation copy inscribed and signed by the author. Includes ephemera about a book signing by Archie Roosevelt. Archibald Bulloch Roosevelt, Jr. (February 18, 1918 - May 31, 1990), the first child of Archibald Bulloch Roosevelt and grandson of US President, Theodore Roosevelt, was a soldier, scholar, polyglot, authority on the Middle East and a career CIA officer. He served as chief of the Central Intelligence Agency's stations in Istanbul, Madrid and London. Roosevelt had a speaking or reading knowledge of at least twenty languages. An Arabic scholar and former CIA operative, he offers an informed perspective of the Islamic world, recounting his career in the intelligence service and the important political figures he has met along the way. The author discusses his experiences as an intelligence officer during and after World War II in Egypt, Iran, Iraq, and elsewhere, and his experiences with the Voice of America. His wife is Selwa "Lucky" Roosevelt, Chief of Protocol for the U.S.

Seller Inventory # 19132

Bibliographic Details

• Title: For Lust of Knowing; Memoirs of an Intelligence Officer
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, Boston, MA
• Publication Date: 1988
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0316756008
• ISBN 13: 9780316756006
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Very good
• Dust Jacket Condition: fair to good
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)
• Seller catalogs:
  • Middle East
  • Intelligence
  • Zionism
  • CIA
  • Palestine

About this title

Synopsis

An Arabic scholar and former CIA operative offers an informed perspective of the Islamic world, recounting his career in the intelligence service and the important political figures he has met along the way

Reviews

This is a charming, anecdotal report of a life spent in intelligence work in the Middle East and Africa. Grandson of one president and nephew of another, Roosevelt attended Groton and Harvard. He demonstrated a serious approach to learning "exotic" foreign languages and cultures, and a sensitive interest in the people and places he encountered. He says little about his specific activites in World War II military intelligence and post-war CIA work, but portrays the history and atmosphere of the region in lively sketches. Concluding chapters discuss his commitment to preserving American values and his views on the CIA. But the book appeals largely through colorful stories and fascinating personalities. Recommended. Elizabeth R. Hayford, Associated Colls. of the Midwest, Chicago
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.