CIA 101: A Crash Course in Agency Case Officers

by Millick

CIA 101 is the first book about what it's really like to work at the Agency. From application, interviews, and onboarding, to training, overseas deployment, and finally departure, it is an honest account of a CIA Case Officer's career, the ups and downs, good sides and bad, fun, funny, and absurd moments. What you need to know and what's neat to know. Professor Millick is highly qualified to take you on this journey. The author served six tours as an Agency Case Officer, spent twenty years overseas, and worked in a dozen different countries, including all the modern major war zones. He recruited and handled secret agents in far-off, forbidden lands, from terrorists to traffickers, bombers to bureaucrats, liars, thieves, and con artists.

Genres: Espionage, Nonfiction

187 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 17, 2020

Reviews

[Kammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher for an advance copy of this book via netgalley!

This book distincts itself from the other type of similar books written on the CIA by the fact that the author doesn’t over glorify or sugar coat some of the bureaucratic aspect of this government owned agency. Loved reading about the inside stories!

[Kammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher for an advance copy of this book via netgalley!

This book distincts itself from the other type of similar books written on the CIA by the fact that the author doesn’t over glorify or sugar coat some of the bureaucratic aspect of this government owned agency. Loved reading about the inside stories!

[Melise · Rating 2 out of 5]

This has been a difficult book to review. The author framed it as a “real” look at what it is like being a case officer at the CIA. A case officer is what those of us who only know about the CIA from the media might call the handler; the person who seeks out people who might have intelligence to share, recruits them to provide that intelligence and then reports their information back to the CIA.

Millick did a good job of delineating the differences between the media’s representations of the job and the reality (spoiler alert: it is less exciting in real life than it is on TV), and he portrays the organization as the real bureaucracy that it is (which shouldn’t be surprising since it is a large governmental agency, but still unexpected).

However, I had a difficult time determining the author’s point of view and I found that troubling. He repeatedly stated that he was proud to have worked there, but at the same time was rather scathing about the quality of his coworkers, their recruits and the information they gathered. This was so scathing, that I was left wondering what the author could possibly have done that they felt proud about.

In addition, there were fewer interesting stories from the trenches than I was expecting from this type of book. I understand that in some ways this was the point—the work of a case officer is not as exciting as it might seem—however I could probably offer just as many interesting and/or funny stories as Millick has about my line of work, but I wouldn’t expect them to carry an entire book.

In some ways, this book felt more like an extended exit interview from a disappointed ex-employee than an actual book, and I was somewhat disappointed by that overall tone.

Thanks to Smith Publicity for providing me with an advanced reading copy via NetGalley.

[Darius Ostrowski · Rating 1 out of 5]

I enjoy espionage novels and international thrillers. I know they are unrealistic, even those written by people who have lived those lives skip the boring stuff and highlight/exaggerate the exciting aspects of the job. But even so, I am interested in what the reality is behind the fiction.

So along comes “CIA 101: A Crash Course in Agency Case Officers” by Professor Millick which promises to tell us what life is really like for Case Officers at the CIA. And fails.

Professor Millick basically tells us nothing. I understand that he is unable to divulge secrets, but this book fails to provide any facts, stories, examples, anything. It is a series of essays telling us either how Professor Millick is superbly qualified for the role he played or how other people are crushed by the bureaucracy and drudgery of their daily government job. Some of the insights: people hate bureaucracy, people are motivated by money, people don’t want to be killed, Professor Millick was a great Case Officer. That’s about as insightful as this book gets.

What’s missing? Details about training. What their “routine” job is daily once they’re overseas. Any stories about what Professor Millick did or lived through. An example of what recruiting a resource can involve. A viewpoint on any of the publicly known incidents in recent history. And I’m not naïve, I know that details of certain jobs cannot be revealed to protect people/information. But as a result, this book provides nothing, a real disappointment. Maybe that’s the whole point – make the CIA seem boring and incapable, lull our enemies into believing this is what the world’s greatest espionage organization is really like. If that’s the case, it succeeds beyond imagination.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Independent via NetGalley. Thank you!

[mike crandall · Rating 1 out of 5]

Blah Blah. Nothing but a rant about what used to be. Booh Hoo.

Junk. Didnt really expect much but got even less. Books about institutions like the FBI and CIA from ex employees prey on readers hoping to gain a little insight into the secret workings of the facade of spycraft. This author has raised the exploitive bar higher than most by ranting naively about what used to be. Vaguely discussing some non specific occurrences and then returning to useless ranting. Dont waste your time.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]



There are very few parts of our government that arouse as much curiosity as our intelligence services, and of those services, the most famous is the CIA. From movies and television, every American probably has some preconceived idea of what a CIA Spy (Case Officer) does. The vast majority of them are very wrong. 



In this book, Professor Millick takes his readers on a clear and open tour of the life and work of case officers. He does it by using examples from his own career. His account is blissfully unvarnished and free of attempts to either apologize for the actions of the Central Intelligence Agency or over-glamorize them. For anyone considering a career in the clandestine service, or who just wants a dose of reality the next time he watches a spy thriller, this book should be required reading.



While the entire book is worth reading, I particularly suggest Lesson 10: A Closed System. Starting by making an analogy to the inbred herds of deer on the grounds of a training facility, Millick incisively demonstrates a key problem with the CIA and many other organizations. To protect itself the organization limits its exposure to outside influences. As time goes on this leads to greater and greater isolation of the organization. Eventually, it becomes like the limited gene pool of those inbred deer.
The author writes:

“As a rule, closed systems are rarely healthy, breeding suspicion of outside influences and resisting change. The Agency’s conservative culture is all the more striking, given the rapid change of pace in the rest of the world”



He further expands on this idea in a later lesson:

“Not surprisingly there is little camaraderie within the US government as a whole. Relations between departments run hot and cold, giving rise to constant turmoil between the CIA, the military, and the State Department.”



This final quote leads me to a final point. Professor Millick has done more than he set out to do. While showing what the CIA looks like from the inside, he also gives his readers something he did not plan on -- a glimpse into the disappointment of a true believer facing the fact that something he believes in is not living up to the standards he had hoped it would.

He may think that these feelings are unique to the CIA, but they are much more broadly applicable. As someone who joined the Foreign Service the same year Millick joined the Agency I can say that those same feelings are experienced every day at the Main State. I would also bet that they are felt in the military, on Capitol Hill, and in most agencies of the United States government. Anywhere where people have thrown themselves into a mission believing they could make a real difference and learned to their sorrow that even the noblest agency is staffed by human beings with all their flaws and failings.

[Rhonda Peters · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first thoughts when I started reading this book were: 1) “How was he allowed to write such things?” 2) “This is going to ruffle some feathers.” CIA 101 is not what I expected. It’s a brutally honest critique of a secret part of the US government. And it turns out, I was right, at least the second thought. Clearly, a few others weren’t too happy with the plain talk and non-PC ideas. It was strange to read that the book didn’t have enough “stories” (when it actually has tons). Or that it didn’t sound enough like James Bond (when the Intro said flat-out it wasn’t that type of book). Maybe those are specious complaints to hide behind. To me, it’s a one of a kind book, and I really enjoyed reading it. No, it wasn’t what I was expecting. At times I felt it was geared more towards those who are either in that line of work or want to be, and I guess I'd recommend it mostly to them. But even I’m able to leave my comfort zone from time to time.

[Veronica · Rating 4 out of 5]

"As a kid, I dreamed of being a communist dictator. I wanted to rule my own country, compel others to salute and sing songs in mu honor. But as luck would have it, I was born too late for that to be a realistic option."

And so begins our crash course in life as an intelligence agent or "Case Officer" if you're actually doing the job. After 20 years in the Agency, Millick has a complicated relationship with the CIA and the "sarcastic and sassy tone" he uses to describe an organization that is beloved and horribly, humanly flawed reflects it perfectly. If this were an extended book, I might have been a bit more disappointed by the lack of exciting content, but the collection of essays was short, easy to read and, for a book about bureaucracy, pretty entertaining.

[Jeannette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Full Disclosure: I received a copy of CIA 101: A Crash Course in Agency Case Officers by Professor Millick from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for possibly writing a review.

As a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State, it is pretty common for people to think I am involved in the world's second oldest profession. I'm not which is usually met with the response, "Of course you would say that if you were." So I just have to accept that people think I'm a spy. With that in mind, I thought reading this would be a fun exercise in learning all the things that I supposedly already know how to do. What I did learn, there are some real similarities between State and the Central Intelligence Agency and between diplomats and case officers. I can see why people might confuse us.

I appreciate that the author didn't try to sugarcoat his experience. Every government agency has things it can improve at. There is definitely humor and some very interesting material. If you are intrigued by the Agency, you might want to start here.

[Ernie Svenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sober, unvarnished insider account of the life of a C/O

This is useful and fascinating on the obvious level and more fascinating, demoralizing and useful at a deeper level. If you want to know the truth about the bureaucratic morass that is the CIA then read this well written, thoughtful account and weep.

We are not the shining city on a hill. We are the country that wastes resources and arrogantly imposes political will without any sensible strategy other than flexing our muscles and fueling more terrorism (which is also the spawn of bureaucracy).

[John Mansuy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Inside Look of the CIA

CO Millick dissects the CIA culture exposing its warts and its positive features. Having 20 years experience in the federal government many years ago, it was disheartening to read how our bureaucratic bloated government continues to fossilize. I know the author and am confident what he describes is a true accounting of his experiences. This is an excellent book to give you the 101 Introduction to the CIA.

[scott beaty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Its the easiest most honest book about the agency I've read.. I like the way the author lays it out there. There's no special superhero bullshit going on. Its plain Jane text that's it. I read hoaky books from other former c/o's telling tales of great lies in after the fact bok deals, this guy isn't doing it. He basically says, 'look man, its was fun, it was cool, here's the deal, I did my time, I moved on'. Its that simplicity that makes this book cool.

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[Douglas Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots about CIA attitudes, very little about case officer experiences

You may have your own reasons for reading this book, but if you were hoping for information as to what case officers (agent runners) do and how they do it, this is not the right book. It does explain many institutional issues that, if accurate, may account for the agency's apparent inability to foresee the obvious.

[Richard A. Grzybowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too philosophical

The book is well written and, in places, keeps my interest high only to lose that interest in philosophical diatribes which do not add anything to the meat of the book. Through it you can fish out the details of the basic functions of case officers, their training and development. I guess the laws of disclosure of classified information prevents too detailed account of working in a CIA station. Overall good book.

[Allyssa Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars for CIA 101 by Professor Millick
A story of his job at the CIA, this book was a series of essays and some were better then others. I learned some intriguing things about the CIA in this book. It was a new perspective for me on the CIA and had some humor at least in it. Not 5 Stars, but not awful ,

[Christopher A. Matthews · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting entry into the world of case officers and CIA management, but quickly digresses into a complaint fest of all the things wrong with the agency and the system. The author then rehashes the same problems like a disgruntled employee writing a tome about how terrible their employer of 25 years has been.

[Paul Perrone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good short read on the Agency

Mostly entertaining. Somewhat repetitive. Stories told with wit and humor. Thoughtful. A short read. Not a tell all. And perhaps, given the topic, complete misinformation as well. Who really knows.

[John Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great insight

This was a wonderful , and honest, look into the CIA. not what I was expecting. This description of the CIA wad not what I was expecting when I started the book, but I liked the authors story.

[Ronie Huff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice job on the book. Liked it a lot. Great insight to the C.I. A.

Well written and a good read. The author does a good job trying stay on task and not to digress with personal grievances.

[Richard Gunvalsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting perspective

Have read a few books written by ex CIA employees. This author conveyed his feelings better than most and said the least. Seems to be identical to corporate America!

[Ruqia]

a crash

[Caroline David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A hysterical look into the worlds most elite agency. This book didn't disappoint. While there was some very interesting essays within the book, the authors sense of humor shines through and I loved it. It was exactly the kind of thing a book like this needed.

[Andrew Palumbo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Professor Millick offers a look behind the curtain at the CIA and how it operations. The book is a quick read and seeks to provide readers a glimpse beyond the typical books covering CIA “heroics” and dives into the day-to-day experience of CIA case officers.

It certainly was a new perspective on the CIA and not what I expected when I started this book. I think the most surprising thing was that so many readers will likely see more parallels to their own workplaces than differences.

It was a fun, light read and I could see myself recommending it to someone who has an interest in the CIA and the intelligence world.