Operatives, Spies, and Saboteurs: the Unknown History of the Men and Women of World War II's OSS

Infantry Magazine,  May-June, 2004  

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Operatives, Spies, and Saboteurs: The Unknown History of the Men and Women of World War II's OSS. By Patrick K. O'Donnell. Free Press, 2004. 336 Pages. Price unavailable. Reviewed by Second Lieutenant James A. Capobianco.

Claiming to be the first agent level history of the famed Office of Strategic Services, Operatives, Spies, and Saboteurs is created from interviews with more than 300 surviving OSS agents and supporting declassified documents at the National Archives. The book takes the reader on a journey from the bureaucratic inception of the OSS, through agent training and OSS operations in various countries and campaigns of the War. All descriptions and narratives are exclusively from the operator's perspective.

As the predecessor to the present day Central Intelligence Agency, the Office of Strategic Services pioneered intelligence gathering techniques, tactics, and safeguards which are reportedly still in use today. The brain child of William "Wild Bill" Donovan, the OSS emerged as the premier instrument for clandestine operations. Based upon the teachings and experiences of the British secret services, Donovan took the concept of "shadow war" to a new level. He centralized American clandestine efforts under one agency and then expanded their operational reach. The emerging techniques and endeavors of the OSS are detailed by the very agents who were tasked to achieve the impossible; infiltrate the German Reich, gather intelligence, coordinate resistance, and propagate misinformation.

The reader is presented with a unique insight into the dark underworld of espionage, counterintelligence, guerilla tactics, and psychological warfare. Among the many agents depicted is Lieutenant William Wheeler, leader of a 15-man group, whose mission was to jump behind German lines into Northern Italy and coordinate resistance groups and gather intelligence. Agents such as Wheeler routinely found themselves isolated and operating deep inside hostile territory. They worked in small groups and survived with the aid of resistance and freedom fighters. Theirs was a mission of danger hidden behind a shroud of secrecy. If captured they were sure to be tortured and ultimately executed; there would be no rescue and their fate hinged upon the ability to construct a thin parapet of plausible deniability.

Operatives, Spies, and Saboteurs is interesting, historical, and even exciting; yet, the book suffers from the author's inability to seamlessly integrate interview excerpts and documented evidence. At certain points it is difficult to discern who is doing the narration; at other times, it is nearly impossible to grasp the relationship between an inserted quote and the already established text. Sadly, the author struggles in the presentation of his research and the result is a disjunct depiction of what is otherwise a very engaging historiography.

While this book certainly has its drawbacks, the raw content is too powerful and poignant to be outright dismissed. The harrowing experiences of the OSS agents are truly remarkable and before now, have gone largely unnoticed. For anyone who is even remotely interested in World War II, clandestine operations, or intelligence activities, this book is worth your attention.

COPYRIGHT 2004 U.S. Army Infantry School
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group