Operation Solo: The FBI's Man in the Kremlin

by John Daniel Barron

Operation Solo is America's greatest spy story. For 27 years, Morris Childs, code name "Agent 58", provided the United States with the Kremlin's innermost secrets.

Repeatedly risking his life, "Agent 58" made 57 clandestine missions into the Soviet Union, China, Eastern Europe, and Cuba. Because of his high ranking in the American communist party and his position as editor of its official paper, the Daily Worker, he was treated like royalty by communist leaders such as Khrushchev, Brezhnev, and Mao Tse-tung. Through first-hand accounts, Operation Solo tells the story of the conflicts within the FBI and American intelligence about the operation, and how the FBI, through extraordinary measures, managed to keep that operation hidden from everyone, including the CIA. Operation Solo will appeal to movie audiences looking forward to Steven Spielberg's upcoming blockbuster movie, Bridge of Spies .

Genres: History, Espionage, Nonfiction, Biography, Russia, Politics, Historical

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could have been a much more interesting book than it is. The story is primarily that of Morris and Jack Childs and how the FBI, after first utilizing Morris and Jack as spies within the CPUSA, insinuated them and their wives into the world of Communist Parties affiliated with the USSR. From 1958 through 1977, Morris Childs, visited Soviet block countries 52 times, meeting regularly with the Soviet leadership and coordinating work between them and Gus Hall, Chair of the CPUSA. This, of course, is interesting in itself and author Barron certainly did his homework by interviewing surviving principals, particularly Eva Childs, Morris' wife, and a number of FBI agents who ran the operation out of Chicago and New York. What's almost entirely missing, however, is any depth or analysis. The book is written in two dimensions--like Jack Webb's demand for "just the facts" on the old 'Dragnet' tv show.

What would have been interesting would have been some representation of how two communists like Morris and Jack felt about the movement they had devoted substantial parts of their young manhoods to. Sure, Morris was disappointed by the Party, turning to its adversaries in the end. Sure, a lot of people were disappointed, disappointed by the Stalin-Hitler Pact, by the invasion of Finland, of Poland, of Hungary, of Czechoslovakia. But it's one thing to break with the CPUSA, another to become a complete turncoat, especially with an agency like the FBI which, under Hoover (virtually invisible in this book), was in league with the Mob and reluctant to protect civil rights workers or even the President, Kennedy, who was pushing for civil rights legislation at the time he was murdered. From the high position Morris reached in the Party it did certainly become evident that the Party was a toady for the USSR, but this fact was not something generally known by its membership, many if not most of whom were sincere and self-sacrificing idealists. What about the betrayal of them? And what about the dearth of any indication that the Childs family members maintained any involvement in progressive causes after they rejected the CPUSA? One might expect some degree of anguish and soul-searching in these regards, but author Barron conveys neither.

The problem may be that Barron was a right-wing cold warrior, incapable of seeing any good to persons he identifies as left leaning. In the text there is only scorn for figures like Martin Luther King and Angela Davis--not to mention Gus Hall, who is treated with extreme negativity, or any of the overseas communist figures. Such progressive concerns as Morris Childs may have maintained as a thread underlying his character and life may therefore have been met by what amounts to Barron's blindspot.

[Natali Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

A life spent in the world of secrets, first for the opposition then as a double agent for the home team. It is difficult to imagine how a person can live day-in and day-out under such pressure. A thrilling page turner.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book truly was amazing! The story of U.S spy Morris Childs and his brother and wife is amazing in and of itself. But the author wrote it in such a way that every word counted. He let the story speak for itself and did try to add a lot of superfluous stuff to make it 'more interesting'. It didn't need any of that and would have taken away from the events.

What a way to live your life. For 27 years Childs was a spy for the U.S. He had to always watch what he said whether with people or alone. While interacting with the soviets he was always having to analyze their behavior toward him and determine if their behavior was real, or if it was suspicious. Doing all of that while having a chronic heart condition and finally ending it at the end of his life in his 70s, is amazing. If he was found out they would have tortured him until they finally killed him. Knowing this he continued and went back time and time again.

He and his brother Jack had personal relationships with Fidel Castro, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, Mao Tse Tung, and many other high ranking officials.

My only thing, which I'm sure is impossible to know, is I wondered what happened when the Child's went into hiding. All of the sudden the FBI came and put them into hiding. What and how did the Russians find out? What were their thoughts? Did they know exactly who and what Morris was? The whole book we're privy to what the Russians were thinking that to all of the sudden not know was frustrating!

I was also a bit miffed with Reagan for keeping Morris in when everyone in the FBI said it had gotten too dangerous. Too many people knew about SOLO at that point. Too many leaks were given to the media. Morris could barely talk when he got back from Moscow he was in such poor health. And the president refused to let them close it down when everyone close to the operation concluded that finally it was not safe.

I learned so much about that time in history and am fascinated by this story. It took me about a week to read. I read every word and thought about it as I was reading it. You know it's a good book when it takes me more than two days to read it. :)

Anyway, I could go on and on I just loved this book and thought it completely fascinating. It makes me wonder who in our country is doing this same thing right now. Living their life this way and sacrificing their entire life for our country. It also makes you wonder about the U.S. being spied on by other countries. Oh, I'm going on again. Better stop now before I have 5 pages.

[Gail · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just lowered my rating from three stars to two stars. There's an awful lot of information in this book and a few times I actually considered to stop reading. I have read plenty of books on Soviets spying on the United States and vice versa, but never about an American working for the FBI who was able to infiltrate the Soviet Union with ease and gather secrets. In and of itself, this should be really exciting, but I didn't find it so at all. Much of the time, I thought the writing was quite dry and plodding. Now I understand why the author had so much trouble finding a publisher. I did learn about how the Soviets thought and their relationship with China. Perhaps if somebody else did the writing, the book would have flowed much better and would have been more enjoyable to read.

[Mark Kirby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely amazing book which tells the true story of two brothers who worked as double agents for the FBI for approximately 20 years while serving in the Communist Party of the USA. One of the brothers was on a first name basis with the leaders of many of the most powerful communist nations, including the USSR. The operation was such a closely held secret, the author was only allowed to publish the book after the death of the brothers. If you enjpy espionage fiction, read this non-fiction work which is infinitely more fascinating and intriguing because it really happened!

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely incredible book and story that should be known by more people.

It is primarily about Morris Childs and his wife Eva. Morris was the vice-general secretary of the US Communist Party before becoming disenchanted by the Soviets after a serious of brutal uprisings and their suppression in the 40s and 50s. He went to the FBI and with his wife, Eva (and later his brother, Jack) and became an FBI informant for more than 25 years. Going on 50+ missions to the Soviet Union and China and rubbing shoulders with the likes of Khrushchev, Mao, Chou Enlai, Castro and Brezhnev. No one in the East would ever find out that 1) He was an FBI informant and 2) that he spoke Fluent Russian as he was originally from a Russian-Jewish family in Kiev.

Because of his and wife's charming manner and impeccable ability to convince those that he was a communist and satisfy their delusions about the exaggerated power of the American Communist Party, Morris and his wife at the height of the cold war, provided Washington and its allies with a window into the Kremlin and the minds of the men within its chambers.

Would recommend this book to anyone interested in the cold war, espionage, or just likes a thriller!

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

fascinating and very well written

[Walt Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book. From the second I opened the book to the second I turned the last page I was enthralled. I left this book with a deep appreciation for the sacrifices made by people around the world in the overthrow of the Soviet Union, and the protection of the United States.
If you are a history buff, a fan of the spy novel, or are just looking for a good book, you have found your next great read.

[Scott Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read a few books about spies and this is my favorite. What Morris Childs and his wife did for the country is truly remarkable. I had a pit in my stomach every time he flew to Russia knowing that at any time his cover could have been blown by a Russian spy.

I almost cant imagine what it must be like to lead this fascinating, risky life and not be able to share it with anyone.

I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in true spy stories.

[Russ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Morris Childs, the FBI's agent 58, made close relationships with Khrushchev, Brezhnev, and Andropov within the Soviet Union. He gained access into their thinking and helped shape US policy for several administrations. A fascinating story for sure, but a less than interesting read. I kept wishing it had fallen into the hands of a more gifted writer. My apologies if you know the author.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm about halfway through, and it's really interesting. Not only does it have the feel of a Tom Clancy at times, but it's also mostly about my great-uncle's brother.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Operation Solo” by John Barron is an astonishing and well-written book. How is it that name of the the most valuable spy the United States has ever had is practically unknown? This is a great spy story, and it’s true.

Morris Childs, son of Russian Jews who emigrated to Chicago, joined the American Communist Party in 1921 where he rose to become a member of the Central Committee and ran unsuccessfully for US Congress on the Communist Party ticket. His brother Jack later joined the party also. After some shabby treatment by the party in 1947 and his health suffering, Morris dropped out, and Jack became inactive also in part to help care for Morris. This sudden withdrawal from party activity triggered a visit to Jack by two FBI agents eager to assess his potential to cooperate.

Here the FBI hit the jackpot. Jack was agreeable to cooperation but pointed out that brother Morris was their ticket to the top. Morris had become wiser about the USSR and realized they were being ruled by a cutthroat band of mass murderers. Two FBI agents appealed successfully to Morris and farsightedly and on their own initiative enabled payment for him to be treated at the Mayo Clinic, where his health was restored.

Now working with the FBI, the brothers re-established their party connections and worked their way up party ranks. Morris became the liaison between the American and the Soviet parties. He made dozens of trips into the Soviet Union, enjoying access to several successive premiers and topmost Soviet intelligence operatives as well as Mao Tse Tung and Fidel Castro. He was fully aware of the horrors awaiting him in Moscow if he were discovered.

Thus the FBI was aware of every move of the American Communist Party and of much information of greatest importance about affairs in the Soviet Union and its top leadership and spy apparatus, until the operation was terminated in 1980.

The information obtained by Morris Childs was of the greatest strategic and tactical assistance in the Cold War. For example, it was Childs who first learned of the widening fracture between Soviet and Chinese Communism, completely unsuspected in the US. Without this information, it would not have occurred to Nixon to arrange his historic visit to China in 1972.

The Soviet Hierarchy is an insulated and paranoid bunch, enjoying their lavish homes and dachas, rarely going outside their own pampered little worlds and scornful of sentiments in the streets of their own country and largely ignorant of the rest of the world. Many start believing their own propaganda. Childs saw the resulting delusional thinking first hand and recognized its dangers. Paranoid minds sometimes decide to strike first in order to forestall an imaginary threat. Childs repeatedly had to provide accurate explanations of American activities and reassure the Soviet hierarchy of the lack of aggressive intent of the United States.

In fact, no sooner had Childs quit traveling to the USSR than a possible nuclear exchange was averted. About 1981, during the Reagan presidency, a British intelligence agent learned that KGB Chairman Yuri Andropov had announced to the Politburo that the Reagan administration was actively preparing for nuclear war and a possible surprise attack on the Soviet Union. Andropov explained that NATO, Japan and China were conniving to initiate World War Three. The KGB set in motion an intelligence operation code named RYAN to gather evidence worldwide of these preparations.

If Childs had been there, he could have correctly explained the meager facts that the KGB had which apparently supported this wild but dangerous notion. As it was, the KGB, operating in its usual paranoid top-down manner, sent out instructions to its intelligence assets around the world to find the evidence of this plot. Thereafter these assets, knowing that when the KGB asked them to find evidence, they had better find evidence (there was none), began producing every little scrap which could conceivably support the theory.

All this was not helped by the fact that for years the Soviet leaders were incapacitated: Brezhnev was a walking zombie, Andropov became deathly ill, and Chernenko was senile and died. A few KGB officers recognized this nuclear scenario as an insane idea, but it enjoyed such patronage at the top that none dared try to stop it. On the other hand, some field bosses tried to gain status by inflaming the paranoia with absurd reports. Some reports of this paranoia made it back to the administration but sounded so bizarre they were dismissed.

When Mikhail Gorbachev took power in 1985, the KGB briefed him that Operation RYAN was a complete failure, having learned nothing about the US position in the matter. But the doomsday notion was still believed. It was not until later in 1985, when Reagan sat down with Gorbachev, declared that the US had no intention of attacking the USSR, and invited him to the US to see for himself, that Operation RYAN ended.

Also of note, it was from Childs that the Johnson administration knew that the USSR was not involved in the assassination of President Kennedy, and another possible serious misunderstanding was averted.

Morris Childs was awarded the Soviet Order of the Red Banner for his services(!) to the Communist Party. He and Jack Childs received the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Reagan.

The contributions of Morris (and his wife Eva) and Jack Childs should be known and appreciated by everyone. Great heroes, both, and hats off to the FBI and its agents, who ingeniously negotiated multiple perils from within the organization and our own government, as well as from a paranoid and vigilant KGB.

The internal FBI files on Operation Solo are now available free at archiv.org.

[Inna Naz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story started interesting, got repetitive and boring, got interesting again, but then died boring. The last chapter was hard to get through. As expected, lots of underlying American pride and nationalistic undertones. Overall the history lesson was worth it. The actual operation is almost beyond belief.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like most people, have never heard of Operation SOLO. Also, like most people learned most of what I know about the cold war through school and my grandpa but learning it through the eyes of Morris and Eva is absolutely intriguing. This book is incredible reminder of what our country went through the cold war, and how some people risked themselves every day for our freedom.

[Bob Spears · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good read and account from Morris and Eva Child’s and how they navigated into the VERY TOP of the USSR party leaders. And then how they risked everything to bring back reports on the Russian politics, reporting them to the FBI.

[Sally Monaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating book about two brothers and their wives who operated as FBI moles in the US Communist Party and in the Kremlin.

[Nolan Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully true story about a man waking up to the evils of communism and then doing a very courageous thing.

[Jennifer Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always exciting to come across a book about something you know absolutely nothing about. I had never heard of this particular operation, and it was immensely interesting learning about it. The importance of this little bit of history and the people involved is so amazing that it's hard to fathom that I've never happened upon anything about it. It's a really good job of telling you a thorough history but never getting bogged down, or drowning in needless repetition. Very enjoyable.

[Seth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Morris Childs was the secret second in command in the American Communist Party. On forged visas, he travelled back and forth from the U.S. to the Soviet Union to China to Cuba and back constantly for 27 years, hanging out with his best buds Khrushchev, Brezhnev, Mao, and Fidel. He was their main man--THEY THOUGHT! Really he was a double agent playing them all for suckers, bringing back every word to the FBI. He and his wife did as much to shape U.S. foreign policy as any other two people in American history, and I had never even heard of them.

I was shocked how close the USSR came to nuking China and how paranoid they were about Americans, especially in the 80's, when through delusions reinforced by "group think," they came dangerously close to starting WWIII. Their military intelligence was great, but their political intelligence was awful. Childs talked them off a few cliffs and and helped them to see things as they really were. His spying helped U.S. leaders to enter negotiations knowing exactly what was on the Russians' minds. He kept up his missions even after the mission was leaked to unfriendly Congressmen, knowing full well that if the Soviets found out, he would be slowly tortured to death.

The most interesting thing I got out of the book was why Childs defected. He was a solid communist leader who had even attended the Lenin School in Russia where he learned how to incite rebellion. But his "Communism"--charity, kindness, brotherhood--was not Communism at all. The truth slowly set in that Stalin had killed hundreds of thousands of Russian adversaries and hard-core Communists alike to cement his power. Soviet leaders oppressed the poor and the Jews and deluded themselves (and others through misinformation) about the "successes" of communism and conditions in the U.S. (McCarthy wasn't even close to as delusional as the Soviets were).

Then he was invited to a party at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. At first, the journalists and leaders gave him the cold shoulder, but then the Ambassador's wife drew him in, and then everyone was kind to him. The contrast was striking enough that when the FBI came calling later, he was ready to give up his life for the sake of his country. Like Paul, he was used to fighting for a cause. It was just the wrong cause, so the transition was smooth. Wonderful.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Morris Childs associated closely with the rulers of the USSR through 30 years of the cold war. The Russians warmly regarded Morris as "the last of the first Bolshevik's." But Morris, with some of his close family, worked as double agents for the FBI throughout that entire time.

Operation SOLO changed my perspective of world events. Mostly it saddened me to see how much damage only a few powerful men could inflict on their own nation. The book also left me wondering what exactly China has on its agenda today. The USSR as portrayed in this account is gone but the same communist party still rules China today.

[Cody Robichau · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a few questions that I never got answered. Well researched though, and pretty insightful. An intimate look at cold war Russia, and detailed communist party inter workings. I really enjoyed the interweaving of international politics with the story. I like the Russian reaction to JFK's assassination, Castro, and Vietnam. The most interesting is how unapologetic and rude China's attitude toward Russia was during this time. In school we do not learn about other countries near miss wars. Overall, not a James Bond rather a Bobby Fischer type of secret agent.

[VIXEN · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting story. I'd rather read it on audibles. Overall, it is good information but more of an "eh" feeling. I wasn't compelled to keep reading it with a vigor to rival a Harry Potter book. But I'm glad to know the story; I'm glad the history is preserved. Well done to the author for compiling it all in one place.

[Mark Kinney · Rating 4 out of 5]

The true story of the FBI's top agent in the American Communist Party, and access to top Soviet leaders as well. As a true story, it's not packed with Bond/Bourne action, but it's a fascinating read nonetheless.

[Quinn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty darn good. I would give it a 3.5 overall. It's a fantastic true account of Morris Child's adventures in Leninland. You can tell Childs and his wife Eva were really good down to earth people. It's amazing what one small operation can do.

[Hayley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to follow, captivating storyline, and unbelievable events. I'm in awe of what happened, of how dedicated these people were to their cause and country. I supremely hope that there are still people of this quality and moral fiber working behind the scenes today.

[Samuel Steigert · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredible fascinating story about what could be seen as the most successful espionage operation in the history of the United States.
Since this is my first book on the Cold War, I believe that Operation SOLO will make for a very good re-read in a couple of years.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating story. Unfortunately it's poorly written.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing book about a U.S. Spy in the Kremlin. A nonfiction master work!

[Cherie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an amazing book. A real life spy story. I learned a lot of things I had no idea about that were very intriguing.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The whole time I was reading this book I kept thinking, "I can't believe this is a true story". Real spies, real world leaders, real Americans risking their lives for our country. Great story.