Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA by Tim Weiner

This book is a comprehensive history of the Central Intelligence Agency from its inception in 1947 to 2007. It provides an in-depth look at the agency's triumphs and failures, revealing a pattern of poor intelligence analysis, covert operations gone awry, and bureaucratic mismanagement. The author utilizes more than 50,000 documents, primarily from the archives of the CIA itself, and hundreds of interviews with CIA veterans, including ten Directors of Central Intelligence. It's a critical examination of the CIA, questioning its effectiveness and its role in both the Cold War and the War on Terror.

The 10211th greatest book of all time

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Total Points: 18

Since this book was first published in 2007, there is a penalty of 52.8%. The age adjusted score is 8.5.

This is to prevent newer books from reaching super high on the ranked list of the greatest books of all time. The greatest books should also stand the test of time.