Larry Kolb Overworld: The Life and Times of a Reluctant Spy

Overworld: The Life and Times of a Reluctant Spy

Larry Kolb

Riverhead, Nov 2005, $16.00

ISBN: 1594481415

When the audience first reads the prologue, and the Part One The Spy Who Loves Me opening dialogues, the reaction is to believe that OVERWORLD is a biographical fiction or, at best, a lampooning of the murky CIA-Industrial complex. Instead this is a real memoir of an American born and raised in a family of spies, with his childhood accompanying his father traveling all over the world on odd operations. At a young age, Mr. Kolb learned words like "classified", and "secret", as this account with minute details seems genuine as much as can be affirmed, but if not the book remains cleverly and enticingly written.

As a young adult Mr. Kolb rejected the family business. He became a financial advisor to Muhammad Ali, and then accompanied the "Greatest" on a rescue mission to Beirut to bring home American hostages. He soon was back in the game as a jet setting globetrotter with a business front that enabled him to access and gain information for the CIA.

This is a terrific biography with a kick butt spin that provides readers behind the scenes information on some of the operations that have occurred since WW II. The best section is an Espionage 101, as Mr. Kolb delivers an intriguing look at training the spy. How much is truly authentic? Though all feels genuine, no one will care if it is so, except maybe Mr. Goss and Mr. Tenet, as this is an entertaining and insightful look at spying, American style.

Harriet Klausner