What do you think?
Rate this book
Quest : Finding Freddie
Finding Freddie
Thomas Richard Spradlin
About the Book
Finding Freddie is the narrative of a case that Richard Spradlin had in 1976 as a General Partner in the Washington, D. C., law firm of Clifford & Warnke. It concerns the search for one of his firm's clients (known to his wife and friends as "Freddie") who had suddenly "gone missing" in Lagos, Nigeria. A devout Jew, Freddie had simply disappeared on Saturday, August 14, 1976 (the Jewish Sabbath) while on a business trip to Nigeria. His disappearance was particularly disturbing since it occurred not long after the June 27, 1976 rescue by Israel Defense Forces of hostages being held by terrorists at the Entebbe airport in Uganda.
As spectacular and heroic as the Entebbe rescue mission had been, it had caused extreme embarrassment for Uganda's President, Idi Amin Dada Oumee, who was also serving at the time as Chairman of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). In Nigeria, the political situation was even more uncertain due to tensions following an attempted military coup which had taken place on February 13, 1976. Although that coup failed, it nonetheless had resulted in the assassination of Nigeria's Head of State, General Murtala Rufai Ramat Muhammed. It was against this background that Spradlin was sent by his law firm on the quest to find Freddie.
About the Author
Thomas Richard Spradlin served as the assistant to U.S. Senator A. S. (Mike) Monroney of Oklahoma from 1956-63. He attended the George Washington University, where he earned his AA and BA degrees with distinction (Phi Beta Kappa) in 1959. He also attended the George Washington University Law School, where he earned his JD degree with honors and served in the U.S. Army from 1963-1967, where he moved to rank of captain in the U.S. Army. Spradlin is married to Javene Annette Black, M.A., University of Stuttgart, formerly Assistant Professor of History at Stanford University’s German campus and HR executive of the California Endowment. They now reside at a little corner of paradise known as “Critter Creek” in the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee.
Thomas Richard Spradlin
About the Book
Finding Freddie is the narrative of a case that Richard Spradlin had in 1976 as a General Partner in the Washington, D. C., law firm of Clifford & Warnke. It concerns the search for one of his firm's clients (known to his wife and friends as "Freddie") who had suddenly "gone missing" in Lagos, Nigeria. A devout Jew, Freddie had simply disappeared on Saturday, August 14, 1976 (the Jewish Sabbath) while on a business trip to Nigeria. His disappearance was particularly disturbing since it occurred not long after the June 27, 1976 rescue by Israel Defense Forces of hostages being held by terrorists at the Entebbe airport in Uganda.
As spectacular and heroic as the Entebbe rescue mission had been, it had caused extreme embarrassment for Uganda's President, Idi Amin Dada Oumee, who was also serving at the time as Chairman of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). In Nigeria, the political situation was even more uncertain due to tensions following an attempted military coup which had taken place on February 13, 1976. Although that coup failed, it nonetheless had resulted in the assassination of Nigeria's Head of State, General Murtala Rufai Ramat Muhammed. It was against this background that Spradlin was sent by his law firm on the quest to find Freddie.
About the Author
Thomas Richard Spradlin served as the assistant to U.S. Senator A. S. (Mike) Monroney of Oklahoma from 1956-63. He attended the George Washington University, where he earned his AA and BA degrees with distinction (Phi Beta Kappa) in 1959. He also attended the George Washington University Law School, where he earned his JD degree with honors and served in the U.S. Army from 1963-1967, where he moved to rank of captain in the U.S. Army. Spradlin is married to Javene Annette Black, M.A., University of Stuttgart, formerly Assistant Professor of History at Stanford University’s German campus and HR executive of the California Endowment. They now reside at a little corner of paradise known as “Critter Creek” in the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee.
326 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 30, 2023
2 people are currently reading
2 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 14, 2024
I just finished the book "Quest: Finding Freddie" by Thomas Spradlin, and it is one of the best books I've read in such a long time. I've researched this book to see if this is a true story or to find out if any part of it is embellished and, from what I've been able to determine, this seems to be a factual account of a lawyer investigating the disappearance of one of his top clients in the midst of political turmoil in 1970's Nigeria.
Freddie Nachman is a Swedish Jew who has lived in America for thirty-plus years, making an extremely lucrative business selling telecommunications contracts to governments. Freddie goes missing in Nigeria, on the Sabbath, almost directly after the Israeli Entebbe rescue and the more recent failed Nigerian government coup. Richard, a senior partner at Freddie's prestigious law firm, is sent to investigate his disappearance and then locate and bring him home - hopefully alive. But with the political unrest, civil disruption, bureaucratic red tape, and provincial dangers surrounding him, this will be a trip that Richard himself knows he may not return home from. Thankfully, Richard has very loyal friends, local to the region and who are as full of integrity and as central to the plot as he is, as well as obscene amounts of money at his disposal that assist him and both of which he knows he would not get very far without.
The writing is superb, the prose is captivating, and the editing damn near perfect. And I don't know if the author really speaks the way that he does in the book, but if so, he's an American James Bond with a story that Tom Clancy would dream of writing. The author describes an almost step-by-step process in all that he does, rich in detail and in visually provoking clarity. The scenes of conversation or descriptions of locale are just as intriguing and riveting as the scenes that are full of action and suspense. Richard may be a lawyer, but I personally think he has a calling as a writer.
I absolutely loved this book. I give it the highest rating, 4 out of 4 stars (or 5 out of 5, whichever system you are using), and it is worth everyone. There is such a prevalent tendency for books of this genre to be dry and boring, especially when non-fiction, and I had half a thought this would be one when I chose it. But it is June's Book of the Month at OBC for a reason, and I think it should be nominated for Book of the Year. I will re-read this book more than once and not be the least bit bored or any less captivated.
To Mr. Spradlin and his friends (whatever their real names are), thank you for your heroism, your courage, and your willingness to put yourself in harm's way to save another. For us in the cushy West, you are an example to us all.
Freddie Nachman is a Swedish Jew who has lived in America for thirty-plus years, making an extremely lucrative business selling telecommunications contracts to governments. Freddie goes missing in Nigeria, on the Sabbath, almost directly after the Israeli Entebbe rescue and the more recent failed Nigerian government coup. Richard, a senior partner at Freddie's prestigious law firm, is sent to investigate his disappearance and then locate and bring him home - hopefully alive. But with the political unrest, civil disruption, bureaucratic red tape, and provincial dangers surrounding him, this will be a trip that Richard himself knows he may not return home from. Thankfully, Richard has very loyal friends, local to the region and who are as full of integrity and as central to the plot as he is, as well as obscene amounts of money at his disposal that assist him and both of which he knows he would not get very far without.
The writing is superb, the prose is captivating, and the editing damn near perfect. And I don't know if the author really speaks the way that he does in the book, but if so, he's an American James Bond with a story that Tom Clancy would dream of writing. The author describes an almost step-by-step process in all that he does, rich in detail and in visually provoking clarity. The scenes of conversation or descriptions of locale are just as intriguing and riveting as the scenes that are full of action and suspense. Richard may be a lawyer, but I personally think he has a calling as a writer.
I absolutely loved this book. I give it the highest rating, 4 out of 4 stars (or 5 out of 5, whichever system you are using), and it is worth everyone. There is such a prevalent tendency for books of this genre to be dry and boring, especially when non-fiction, and I had half a thought this would be one when I chose it. But it is June's Book of the Month at OBC for a reason, and I think it should be nominated for Book of the Year. I will re-read this book more than once and not be the least bit bored or any less captivated.
To Mr. Spradlin and his friends (whatever their real names are), thank you for your heroism, your courage, and your willingness to put yourself in harm's way to save another. For us in the cushy West, you are an example to us all.
January 1, 2025
"Quest: Finding Freddie" by Thomas Spradlin is one of the best books I've read in a long time. I've researched this book to see if it is a true story or if any part of it is embellished. From what I've been able to determine, it seems to be a factual account of a lawyer investigating the disappearance of one of his top clients in the midst of political turmoil in 1970s Nigeria.
Freddie Nachman is a Swedish Jew who has lived in America for thirty-plus years, making an extremely lucrative business selling telecommunications contracts to governments. Freddie goes missing in Nigeria, on the Sabbath, almost directly after the Israeli Entebbe rescue and the more recent failed Nigerian government coup. Richard, a senior partner at Freddie's prestigious law firm, is sent to investigate his disappearance and then locate and bring him home, hopefully alive. However, with the political unrest, civil disruption, bureaucratic red tape, and provincial dangers surrounding him, this will be a trip that Richard himself knows he may not return home from. Thankfully, Richard has very loyal friends, local to the region and who are as full of integrity and as central to the plot as he is. He also has obscene amounts of money at his disposal that assist him. Without both of these factors, he knows he could not get very far.
The writing is superb, the prose is captivating, and the editing is damn near perfect. And I don't know if the author really speaks the way that he does in the book, but if so, he's an American James Bond with a story that Tom Clancy would dream of writing. The author describes an almost step-by-step process in all that he does, rich in detail and visually provoking clarity. The scenes of conversation or descriptions of the locale are just as intriguing and riveting as the scenes full of action and suspense. Richard may be a lawyer, but I personally think he has a calling as a writer.
I absolutely loved this book. I give it the highest rating, 4 out of 4 stars (or 5 out of 5, whichever system you are using) and it is worth every one. There is such a prevalent tendency for books of this genre to be dry and boring, especially when they are non-fiction, and I had half a thought this would be one when I chose it. But it is June's Book of the Month at OBC for a reason, and I think it should be nominated for Book of the Year. I will re-read this book more than once and not be the least bit bored or any less captivated.
To Mr. Spradlin and his friends (whatever their real names are), thank you for your heroism, courage, and willingness to put yourself in harm's way to save another. For us in the cushy West, you are an example to us all.
Freddie Nachman is a Swedish Jew who has lived in America for thirty-plus years, making an extremely lucrative business selling telecommunications contracts to governments. Freddie goes missing in Nigeria, on the Sabbath, almost directly after the Israeli Entebbe rescue and the more recent failed Nigerian government coup. Richard, a senior partner at Freddie's prestigious law firm, is sent to investigate his disappearance and then locate and bring him home, hopefully alive. However, with the political unrest, civil disruption, bureaucratic red tape, and provincial dangers surrounding him, this will be a trip that Richard himself knows he may not return home from. Thankfully, Richard has very loyal friends, local to the region and who are as full of integrity and as central to the plot as he is. He also has obscene amounts of money at his disposal that assist him. Without both of these factors, he knows he could not get very far.
The writing is superb, the prose is captivating, and the editing is damn near perfect. And I don't know if the author really speaks the way that he does in the book, but if so, he's an American James Bond with a story that Tom Clancy would dream of writing. The author describes an almost step-by-step process in all that he does, rich in detail and visually provoking clarity. The scenes of conversation or descriptions of the locale are just as intriguing and riveting as the scenes full of action and suspense. Richard may be a lawyer, but I personally think he has a calling as a writer.
I absolutely loved this book. I give it the highest rating, 4 out of 4 stars (or 5 out of 5, whichever system you are using) and it is worth every one. There is such a prevalent tendency for books of this genre to be dry and boring, especially when they are non-fiction, and I had half a thought this would be one when I chose it. But it is June's Book of the Month at OBC for a reason, and I think it should be nominated for Book of the Year. I will re-read this book more than once and not be the least bit bored or any less captivated.
To Mr. Spradlin and his friends (whatever their real names are), thank you for your heroism, courage, and willingness to put yourself in harm's way to save another. For us in the cushy West, you are an example to us all.
August 31, 2024
Lost and found
This was an incredible journey that read like a true adventure novel with action, suspense and a bit of romance to lighten the mood. Finding Freddie is a fact based story of a mysterious disappearance of a business man in Nigeria and the work of an Attorney and newly acquired friends to find and return the missing man to his adoring wife.
Filled with great reading footnotes that don't put the reader to sleep, this author guides the reader through 1976 America and Nigeria with familiarity and comfort with the account he writes. The author splatters the pages with movie and literary quotes throughout, showing his prowess as a seasoned researcher and lover of all media.
This was an incredible journey that read like a true adventure novel with action, suspense and a bit of romance to lighten the mood. Finding Freddie is a fact based story of a mysterious disappearance of a business man in Nigeria and the work of an Attorney and newly acquired friends to find and return the missing man to his adoring wife.
Filled with great reading footnotes that don't put the reader to sleep, this author guides the reader through 1976 America and Nigeria with familiarity and comfort with the account he writes. The author splatters the pages with movie and literary quotes throughout, showing his prowess as a seasoned researcher and lover of all media.
June 11, 2024
Good mystery Thrill!
I really cant believe this is based on a real story. That the author actually went through these events. It made it that much more interesting. I couldn't put it down.
I really cant believe this is based on a real story. That the author actually went through these events. It made it that much more interesting. I couldn't put it down.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews