The Volunteer: A Canadian's Secret Life in the Mossad

by Michael Ross

The riveting story of a Canadian who serves as a senior officer in Israel's legendary Mossad. In 1982 a young Michael Ross joins the legion of Canadian twenty-somethings backpacking in Europe. Through happenstance, he winds up working on a Kibbutz in Israel, where he falls in love with the land and its ancient, multi-layered history. He immerses himself in Israeli culture, converts to Judaism, and adopts his new country's struggle for survival as his own, joining the Israel Defence Force and eventually Mossad's most elite and storied covert-operations unit, Caesaria. For seven-and-a-half years, Ross worked as an undercover agent -- a classic spy. In The Volunteer, he describes his role in missions to foil attempts by Syria, Libya, and Iran to acquire advanced weapons technology. He tells of his part in the capture of three senior al Qaeda operatives who masterminded the 1998 attacks on American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania; a joint Mossad-FBI operation that uncovered a senior Hezbollah terrorist based in the United States; and a mission to South Africa in which he intercepted Iranian agents seeking to expand their country's military arsenal; and two-and-a-half years as Mossad's Counterterrorism Liaison Officer to the CIA and FBI. Many of the operations Ross describes have never before been revealed to the public. My first face-to-face encounter with the entity the world now knows as al Qaeda began on Friday, August 7, 1998, the day the group detonated truck bombs outside U.S. embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, killing 291 innocents, including 12 U.S. citizens, and injuring over 4,500 African bystanders. On August 7, I was at home in Israel, enjoying a rare day off, but soon after the blasts, my pager went off. It was an urgent request to call the Mossad's 24/7 communications center.

Genres: Nonfiction, Military Fiction, Espionage, History

296 pages, Paperback

First published August 2, 2007

About the author

Librarian Note: There are more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Jen Surname · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping for more from this book. It got off to a good start, then started to slow and by the end I was really struggling to maintain any interest.

I think I expected excitement and high stakes undercover missions. What I actually got was really quite boring and I was glad when it was over.

I wonder if some of this is down to me and my own politics, and how they differ so much from the writer’s. The whole Israel-as-the-poor-victim standpoint just doesn’t fly with me, and I was fed up of hearing about it by the end when my interest had waned considerably.

Overall, disappointing.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story of a Mossad agent. You have to wonder why he is spilling the beans. And since he is obviously using a pseudonym, you don't really know whether any of his personal background is true. Also the Mossad poo poo's many of his exploits (Of course) But, I liked it.

[F.J. Akkerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A storm is coming, and it would appear that those of us who cherish life, liberty and the goodness in our way of life will have no choice but to endure it. I decided not to wait for the inevitable. I volunteered.

A highly informative look into the modern world of counter-terrorism and international intelligence, especially in the Middle East, this memoir details the author’s twelve years of experience serving as an undercover agent in the Mossad.

Michael Ross left his native Canada with not much and his travels soon led him to Israel, where, after serving in the IDF for a time, he was eventually recruited by the Mossad. So began his career as an undercover agent in the fascinating world of secret intelligence.

Although the narrative dragged at times and wasn't very action-packed (the blurb didn't use the best adjective, there; I would say "compelling" is a more fitting word), I appreciated the honesty with which Ross portrays not the glamour and excitement of Hollywood's world of spies but the very real one of slow, at times painstaking and frustrating, everyday work within the intelligence community, both in the field and in the office; much of the book deals with nothing more than ordinary people working hard to slot little pieces into a giant jigsaw which, for the most part, they can't see in its entirety. Mistakes are made, leads are lost and constant pressure takes its toll mentally, but there are also quiet moments of triumph, a few astounding breakthroughs, some satisfying conclusions and almost completely unheard-of successes...all right under the nose of the public, and greatly under-appreciated (or unappreciated) by them. Sometimes I found myself exclaiming, "Why did we never read about that in the news?!"

Ross is also frank about the effects his career had on his family and his own psyche, as well as other Mossad operatives.

I loved the various quotes chosen as an introduction to each chapter, and my favourite parts were Ross's information about training, joint operations and the touchy relationship between different intelligence agencies, such as the Mossad and the CIA.

Having converted to Judaism and committed so much of his life to Israel, Ross is understandably a little biased, but for the most part this didn't interfere with the accuracy of his account. I think this book is especially relevant today, considering recent events in the Middle East and the anti-Israel sentiment being stirred up by the media as a result. There are two sides to every coin.

You'll learn a lot about the Mossad without really learning much. Which, I am sure, is exactly how it's intended to be.

It's a good story and I liked its modern context (published 2007), but if you want a broader and more intense book about the Mossad, I recommend Gideon's Spies: The Secret History of the Mossad as a better alternative.

But for anyone seeking more than just an overview and willing to dig deeper, The Volunteer: The Incredible True Story of an Israeli Spy on the Trail of International Terrorists is a great inside perspective of the Mossad.

[Benjamin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such an interesting book. I have never known to much, or been that interested in, the middle east but this seemed interesting. Before starting it I read a lot of reviews that said it dragged towards the end but I found the opposite. I couldn't wait to see how this guy's career turned out. There seems to be a lot more to each of these stories but I was glad to read what he was able to tell us. I recommend it.

[Marvin Breshears · Rating 5 out of 5]

Valuable life lessons

A candid narrative of one man's life in an agency often shrouded in secrecy and mystique. The lessons and observations that he presents here are important for all of us to consider. Wish our leaders would read this.

[Nadine Byrne · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️
True story of the life of a Canadian man that was recruited and joined into the Israeli Mossad. I was very interested in learning more about his life and experiences as an intelligence agent in the 1980s-90s leading up to 9/11. I found the beginning of the book to be eye opening and interesting but each chapter covered different places/events in such detail that it became repetitive and tiresome that I started to skim through the chapters. I also wondered what would compel someone in this position to write a memoire, naming players and secrets activities as he did. Sort of an odd outcome given the secrecy of his work.

[GRAHAM MARTIN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Factual Spy Account

Love non fiction books that often read like fiction. Getting a bit outdated but interesting account of Hezbollah, 9-11 and the FBI. Not a lot of spy craft but remember certain information has to be left out because it's the Mossad

[Sriram Venugopal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author worked as a spy in Mossad and this is his story. Its a good read to understand what goes inside Mossad and their ways of working. Not your usual thrilling spy story but it gives an interesting view on the Mossad-CIA/FBI relations and the complex relations and enmities in the middle east.

[Donald K. Ulsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read.

This is a really interesting story as it describes what it was like to be part of the Moss ad. Too bad the U.S. didn't listen to their warning.

[Ronald Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting

A little slow in parts, but interesting a cursory look at something not known by most people. Unsung heroes as most intelligent agencies.

[Matthew Sawasy]

Interesting read

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book written by a Canadian born Mossad agent. As a young man, Michael Ross travelled to Israel on vacation and ended up falling in love with the country, converting to Judaism and marrying an Israeli woman. After serving in the Israeli army he was recruited by Mossad and carried out missions for them for years, as well as liasing with the US. Details regarding Israeli intelligence were omitted for obvious reasons but it's still an interesting read. It also serves as a reminder of why we are at war with militant Islam... seeing as Israel embodies everything that the Western world idealises, and has been targetted by extremist states for those values.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enoyed this. I tore through the first 80% in a few hours over the weekend...then I had to do things like 'go to work' and it took a few days longer to polish it off. Entertaining, well written (just the odd occasion of slight repetition), dramatic, and a fascinating subject.

[Charissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Seemed to drag a bit.

[Foxglove · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect, brilliant, incredible and well written book, I enjoyed it so much. Very useful for a spy story research.

[Clyde · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a true story as I was interviewed by the same people.....but did not join up.