Allen Dulles

James Srodes examines Allen Welsh Dulles's life in his biography, Allen Dulles: Master of Spies. In this biography, Srodes presents a thesis that argues Allen Dulles was the person ultimately responsible for formulating and refining the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) mission and operating procedures and that his decisions have continued to influenced CIA's mission and actions in the present day. Srodes concludes that CIA under Dulles developed into an elite service that focused on providing the president with the best possible analysis of the intentions and actions of the United States friends and enemies.Srodes's biography of Allen Dulles begins with a brief examination of Dulles's parents, grandparents and other family members who were an influential part of his formative years and later life. He pays special attention to Dulles's maternal grandfather, General John Watson Foster, who was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and Secretary of State for President Benjamin Harrison. Srodes also examines Dulles's brother-in-law, Robert Lansing, who also served as Secretary of State under President Woodrow Wilson his brother, John Foster Dulles, who was also Secretary of State under President Dwight D. Eisenhower.Srodes then devotes nearly three quarters of his book to examining Dulles's development into the person that he often remembered for being. Srodes pays close attention to Dulles's early career in the State Department and his service abroad in Europe during World War I where he got his first taste of diplomatic and intelligence duties that helped develop the personal connections and skills that he would need later in life. In the period between World War I and World War II, Srodes examines Dulles remaining career in the State Department before he moved over to the New York law firm of Sullivan & Cromwell, where John Foster Dulles was already a partner. In the time between the two world wars, Dulles's time was a confusing blend of official business conducted for Sullivan & Cromwell and unofficial business for the State Department. When the United States began preparations to enter World War II, Dulles would leave his job at Sullivan & Cromwell and return to government service, working as the head of operations for the Coordinator of Information (COI) that would later transform in the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) that would even later become the basis for the CIA.Srodes closely examines Dulles's time in Bern, Switzerland, where Dulles spent nearly all of World War II working as the OSS station chief. In Bern, Dulles would further develop and refine his talents for intelligence with help from the British intelligence service MI-6. Srodes notes that Dulles eventually grew into his role as station chief and developed into a man more than capable of holding his own in matters of espionage and spy craft and had several notable instances of success which great affected the course of World War II.After devoting almost three quarters of his book to Dulles's time in World War I, World War II and the time in between, Srodes devotes the remainder of his book to examining Dulles's hand in shaping, and eventually leading, CIA.Srodes's treatment of Allen Dulles's life has both excellent observations and detail mixed with unnecessary personal political interpretations and comments that eventually cause the reader to question Srodes ability to convey Dulles's story with an untainted and unbiased viewpoint.Srodes does an excellent job of providing an intricate picture of Allen Dulles's professional development. Srodes examines with great detail how Allen Dulles developed into the character that he is often remembered as. His in-depth look at Allen Dulles's time and professional development in World War I Europe and the aftermath, up to his important role in Bern during World War II is a detailed account of Dulles's life. This detailed account gives the reader an almost perfect picture of how Dulles progressed professionally and was eventually able to assume the role of Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) at CIA in the 1950s.While Srodes provides an intricate overall picture of Allen Dulles's life, his book features occasional and unnecessary political swipes and comments that contribute nothing to the current point of discussion. He frequently criticizes Presidents Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Kennedy and other Democratic politicians on policy issues that he portrays as having little consequence on Dulles's life or professional development. While this commentary is not widespread, when these minor comments are examined as a whole, it may cause the reader to step back and question Srodes analysis of the numerous political situations discussed in the book and thus an integral part of Dulles's life story.Srodes also seems to wander away from his thesis in several areas in the middle and end of his book when he begins to talk about events that have no impact on Allen Dulles's life; personal, professional or otherwise. While the extra information is certainly interesting, it is of no consequence in his examination of Dulles's life. Additionally, Srodes's timeline begins to blend in the later chapters of the book, particularly when he begins to examine the period of the late 1940s up until Dulles's appointment as DCI at CIA in 1953. He occasionally mentions events out of chronological order and this has the potential to confuse and force the reader to pause and mentally put the events in order for a clearer picture and better overall understanding of the issue that Srodes is examining.Overall, Srodes's excellent attention to detail and thoroughness in examining Allen Dulles's professional development in the period from World War I to World War II far outweighs his minor, yet distracting, political commentary.

I am not an historical expert, but I lived through the Dulles era and served in one of Dulles's posts abroad, even knew some of the people. Srodes has brought forth the enormous contribution Allen (the better though lesser known Dulles) brought to the early Cold War. Nor does he fudge the hard ponys, his mistresses, the Bay of Pigs, etc. This is an important contribution to our knowledge of the heady history of the early post-WWII era. I was fascinated from end to end

Reading "Allen Dulles" was a magical book, bringing this great man's life up for full view. You feel transported to Europe at the time of WWII, you feel closer to history of Mr.Dulles' and to the birth of the CIA. Highly recommended.

Thorough and informative of the whole family. He could have elaborated more on his important relationship with C.G. Jung as an informant during WWII.