Capturing Jonathan Pollard: How One of the Most Notorious Spies in American History Was Brought to Justice

Previously I had read Wolf Blitzer's "Territory of Lies." Sorry Wolf, you wrote from the viewpoint of a reporter with limited insider information. If you're interested in the Jonathan "Jay" Pollard story, get this book instead, written by an FBI agent at the forefront of the whole investigation. This book has WAY more interesting details than Blitzer's. My only complaint is that too many pages are wasted showing similar hidden camera images of Jay in the office, none of which offer much information.

This book is an opportunity for interested people to gain a more balanced understanding of who Jonathan Pollard is & what he did.Living in Israel I am surrounded by the hype of Pollard as some kind of altruistic hero to the Jewish people for his selfless act of turning over classified documents to the beleaguered Israeli government. Nothing could be farther from the truth.The biggest plus to this book's veracity is that it was written YEARS before Pollard assumed folk hero status. Ronald Olive tells the story in clear detail, with no real axe to grind. Pollard's Jewishness & his connection to Israel clearly don't enter into the picture as Olive works to uncover & bring him to justice.Noted in the book is Pollard's greed - his diamond engagement ring to his first wife Anne is a case in point. As for Pollard's motives - he tried to sell secrets to an Australian naval officer attached to their embassy, who was so unnerved thinking Pollard to be perpetrating a CIA sting that he immediately reported his encounter to his embassy superiors, who immediately transferred him out of the States!It's a great read that further solidifies in my mind the axiom "You do the crime, you do the time". According to Wikipedia, Pollard is due for release in November 2015. I am NOT looking forward to the ticker tape parade this self-serving narcissist will be getting when he arrives here in Israel. I can only wait & hope that once he's no longer in the limelight he will sink into oblivion.

The story of Jonathan Pollard has many who believe that the punishment dealt to Pollard for his transmission of top secret and sensitive compartmented information to the Israelis was too severe; others believe that it was appropriate. Olive's book presents a balanced view of the complex situation and is highly recommended.

As with all stories about catching spies, you really have to take the narrative presented by Ronald Olive with a grain of salt. Security services are motivated not to give away too much inside information when telling the story of counter-espionage victories. The key piece a reader wants to know more than anything else, namely how the spy was discovered, is usually a well-crafted dissimulation. In this case, Olive’s explanation is even less convincing than normal. However, once past that “minor detail,” the rest of the story flows well, and it is fascinating in its awful description of the intersection of vanity, treachery, international intrigue, international ass-covering, and “just desserts.”There are three very worthwhile aspects to Olive’s narrative. First, he highlights the numerous failures associated with Pollard’s employment with the Department of the Navy. Security is the first line of defense in the counter-espionage game, and the Navy’s manifold failures set the stage for the tragedy that followed. Olive gives that piece to the reader, warts and all. Second, Olive covers the fact that Pollard’s initial offers to commit espionage weren’t to Israel; that in fact he offered his services to four different services in total. Lastly, Olive describes the post-sentencing story of Jonathan Pollard’s narcissistic effort to be justified in his treachery by both the USA and Israel: an effort that did much to work against his release, despite the overwhelming campaigns in both countries.Having encountered the pro-Pollard crowd’s many and varied defenses of this ignoble spy, I’m glad that I’m better versed in the minutia. The book covers important information in understanding this major chapter in the history of espionage. The shortfalls in the book amount mostly to stylistic criticisms, but also to choices of voice. As a Navy investigator leading the Navy’s portion of the case, Ronald Olive can only tell part of the story. The FBI had primary jurisdiction. Much is lost by not having a FBI co-author or at least more of the inside story from the Bureau’s perspective. That may not have been a choice available to Olive, but the effect is the same. Nevertheless, the story is well worth reading, especially given the information that Pollard may be paroled in late 2015 because of the sentencing rules at the time, regardless of his druthers.

I love espionage books. This one moved so slow that I put it down about 6 times in several years only to try again to read it. It just could not keep my attention. I gave it away.

Having read the hunting horse I can safely say this book is a far more in-depth read into the murky world of espionage and Jonathan Pollard. A must read.