Jer
Surprisingly good - I've owned this book for years and assumed it was just going to be “another SOF cool guy bro-out history” replete with their version of history and whose fault all the mistakes were (rarely them).
To be fair, there's plenty of finger-pointing to go around, but it's in this oddly (and usefully) instructional way. Despite it being a narrative, I honestly felt like the guy was right there telling me about what happened and inviting me to participate in learning from him.
Some great key points and takeaways were hit over-and-over; I'm going to get the Kindle edition just so I can more easily snag and review those quotes, and I can really see myself re-reading at least parts of this, not for the story they tell, but the lessons they teach.
Guess it goes to show not all SOF are created equal.
I feel bad giving this book ⭐️⭐️⭐️, given the man's contributions, but as a compiled work, it was really more of a ⭐️⭐️ situation. Didactic, repetitive, opinionated, and focused on self in a way that was somehow grating, this confusing melee of memories really let me down.
The first 5-10% about the author's early career were really interesting. Even some of the initial CIA covert action stuff was fine, given his unique perspective as the ops officer running something so well-known... but everything after that was confusingly circular, focusing on topics instead of following chronology, providing narrative from a perspective of continuity even when he was in completely different roles.
Overall, it felt like either a case of “if I had more time this would have been shorter” or “I want to get all my opinions and perspectives aligned in a self-reinforcing manner to refute any objections,” not the work of a senior national security advisor recounting his career. I don't think there's more than one point where he admits anything he said or did may have been in error, but I would say a solid 20% of the book is riddled with accusations levied at how others did not follow his advice and “look where that got us.”
While I am grateful for his service, the book makes very clear that Mike Vickers was more of an opinionated manager than an inspired leader, someone who cares about doing “the right thing the right way” (without room for alternative views or personal errancy) regardless of the self-contradictions or absurdities. If you took his one-sided views at face value then the defense budget would be 50% of the US GDP and we would have troops deployed in every country in “small forces tamping down insurgencies” or “countering regional hegemonic encroachment” (because global hegemony is somehow the obvious natural state of things).
Maybe this book will get better with age... it's unlikely I'll ever find out, as there's really nothing worth returning for after you've a slogged through once. Ironically, that makes Afghanistan a more appealing place to spend some time than between these pages... if Vickers was a true “insurgent at heart” (which seems to be at least partly true) then perhaps some solace will be found in the reader's immediate need to divest from the overwhelming self-indulgence of this work... an intellectual revolt, if there ever were one.
This one was right in the edge of 3-4 stars... some really good snippets, but also lots of pretty common stuff. Would be a compelling long-read or blog series, but just had a bit too much fluff for a book, at least compared to other books with a similar focus. Also, some of the content didn't age well in terms of specifics (apps, etc.), which probably added to the lower ranking.
Really interesting history with lots of worthwhile details. Makes a weird polemic twist in favor of VCs at the end, which brings into question the motivation of the author and the level of bias in the author's sources, but even if it's tilted in favor of the financial mechanism, it's still well-worth reading for anyone interested, particularly since it covers the international interactions between the US and China.
Well, shoot, I'm just on a roll - this book was awesome too (third 5-star in a row, which is very unusual) — easy to digested great content intermixed with story, concept is really interesting (and applicable), plus Ray Porter kills it as the narrator! Well-worth the listen for anyone who looks at the title and is even just curious.
AMAZING! Best book I've read this year by far (#1/~50), really easy to read, digest, apply, and very accessible. I listened on audio to get the overview and had to keep pausing to write stuff down, so glad I also have the Kindle to highlight. Going to buy this for mentees and start applying in my work projects and personal life. Had no idea it was going to be this good. Seriously. Read it!
I really, really wanted to be able to give this four stars, but it kind-of loses the plot part-way through. Great historical information on symmetry and clearly the author is passionate and well-researched, but, as a book, it just felt a bit disjointed.
Perhaps if you approached it like you were going to take an entire semester to learn the topic (and were willing to do some outside research or pause for a while between chapters to try and apply some of the knowledge), it might be a better read, but that's a somewhat particular method.
Overall, I give it 3.5 stars for being very interesting and summarizing quite a bit from one particular perspective, which is very interesting, and for humanizing a few very clever individuals who died young, but not without making great contributions. These are noble things for a book to do, so if the topic interests you, check it out, you'll probably enjoy many parts of it.
Not what I expected (and barely squeaked by with 4 stars because it gave me some interesting insights into the UK and Europe)... if you want to learn about design perspectives, you will be disappointed. If you want to hear rebuttals to every semi-public negative exposure of the author, you're in luck! But, overall, still a decent read IF you already think it might be a decent read.
Started out rough, but got better. The title is a bit of a misnomer, it's much more a vignette-driven philosophy read than anything scientific or proven, but still interesting if you're willing to invest the time (long read). I listened to it at 2X speed on Audible, which cut it down from 27+ hours to 14 hours (still a very long time). Still, I make pick up the Kindle version for highlights because some of the stories were good and the example linkages were helpful in several cases.
New Book Club Add!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I was not sure what to expect with this book... being somewhat skeptical by nature (working on it!), the concern that this book would somehow fall short of my hopes (as an Airman and proponent of innovation) was at top of mind.
Having not really interacted with Beam (the author), but been around the periphery of AFWERX (the Air Force's innovation-focused team), it was clearly a must-read... but then what?
Thankfully, it did not disappoint, and actually serves as a wonderful resource for others across government who have seen or heard of AFWERX and are interested in what was underneath the hood when it all got moving.
Without spoiling anything, I'll just finish by saying that it is very balanced / circumspect, does not feel overly ego-driven (another concern I had), and is full of enough humor and fantastic Gaping Void illustrations to warrant purchase on those merits alone.
I'll undoubtedly reflect more upon re-reading, but share these thoughts now so that those who are on the edge (or maybe not tracking it yet) can pick it up and add the lessons and ideas to their kit.
It might seem silly to give this five stars, but it's absolutely brilliant and fun in its simplicity, a great “right before bed” read that gives you plenty to think about for at least a couple weeks and can be read and re-read time and again for continued inspiration. I look forward to reading his other books.
Fantastic little compilation spanning many areas of interest under the eponymous “hybrid” and “information warfare” topics. Really can't say enough good things about it, assuming you're in for the academic style - only one chapter struck me as off-key, but that's forgivable given the utility of all the others. Highly recommended if this kind of thing interests you.
Some useful background information — I can't speak to the level of bias or Orientalist-type perspectives that may be present, but appreciated the extensive use of quotations and excerpts as a way of “letting history speak for itself” instead of just summarizing. As someone generally uninterested in China (sorry? I prefer a dry heat and less jungle) and resultantly less familiar with its developments in foreign policy, this at least provided a helpful backdrop and framework against which to lay current events.
Thorough, insightful and remarkably relevant, this book outlines the fascinating history behind continuity of government efforts that began when fear of nuclear annihilation was at the forefront of national security planners' minds. With wide-reaching implications and unique perspectives on how secrecy and government obligations overlap with gray areas of law and morality, it's a worthwhile read for anyone in or considering public service.
You get the idea of the book pretty quickly, but despite the great detail the author goes into, the human stories and personalities are tremendous. Captured entirely from documents declassified 50+ years after the events in question and told in a masterful patchwork quilt of overheard conversations and ruses, it really gives one an appreciation for the type of work carried out in secret by governments around the world under the auspices of national security (though, in this case, largely above board, by current standards, and with much more consideration given to those under interrogation).