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Strangers on a Bridge: The Case of Colonel Abel and Francis Gary Powers (1964)

by James B. Donovan

Other authors: Jason Matthews (Foreword)

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2534105,394 (3.87)6
The #1 New York Times bestseller and subject of the acclaimed major motion picture Bridge of Spies directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Tom Hanks as James B. Donovan. Originally published in 1964, this is the "enthralling...truly remarkable" (The New York Times Book Review) insider account of the Cold War spy exchange--with a new foreword by Jason Matthews, New York Times bestselling author of Red Sparrow and Palace of Treason. In the early morning of February 10, 1962, James B. Donovan began his walk toward the center of the Glienicke Bridge, the famous "Bridge of Spies" which then linked West Berlin to East. With him, walked Rudolf Ivanovich Abel, master spy and for years the chief of Soviet espionage in the United States. Approaching them from the other side, under equally heavy guard, was Francis Gary Powers, the American U-2 spy plane pilot famously shot down by the Soviets, whose exchange for Abel Donovan had negotiated. These were the strangers on a bridge, men of East and West, representatives of two opposed worlds meeting in a moment of high drama. Abel was the most gifted, the most mysterious, the most effective spy in his time. His trial, which began in a Brooklyn United States District Court and ended in the Supreme Court of the United States, chillingly revealed the methods and successes of Soviet espionage. No one was better equipped to tell the whole absorbing history than James B. Donovan, who was appointed to defend one of his country's enemies and did so with scrupulous skill. In Strangers on a Bridge, the lead prosecutor in the Nuremburg Trials offers a clear-eyed and fast-paced memoir that is part procedural drama, part dark character study and reads like a noirish espionage thriller. From the first interview with Abel to the exchange on the bridge in Berlin--and featuring unseen photographs of Donovan and Abel as well as trial notes and sketches drawn from Abel's prison cell--here is an important historical narrative that is "as fascinating as it is exciting" (The Houston Chronicle).… (more)
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English (3)  Swedish (1)  All languages (4)
Showing 3 of 3
A wonderful book by a fellow who seems to be exactly like the person one thinks Tom Hanks to be. Much of this is the straight trial transcript and description of the original and following appeals to the Supreme Court of the Soviet spy. Comments by the judge and asides by Donovan are all a delight. And, the "point" of Donovan's defense is very important and well put. Only a small part of the book at the end covers the Berlin negotiations for the eventual swap, but it is very fast-paced and quite thrilling. Wonderful. Wonderful.
  tmph | Sep 13, 2020 |
Excellent story of Kennedy-era lawyer representing KGB spy Rudolf Abel and US pilot Gary Powers
  chaitkin | May 24, 2017 |
Strangers on a Bridge - the book that is the basis for the 2015 movie starring Tom Hanks, Bridge of Spies - is an excellent read but may be off putting for people not interested in courtroom procedure. Donovan is a lawyer and the story is true, well-written, and an insider's look at the court case that preceded the prisoner exchange of Abel and Gary Powers, the U2 pilot.

About one quarter of the book focuses on the direct and cross examination that occurred during the trial. This detailed look at the questioning, as well as the relevant evidentiary objections, preparation, and motion practice, are inside baseball for lawyers. Law students will find the procedural elements of Donovan's tale to be interesting from the perspective of lawyer war stories.

The book touches on spies, tradecraft, espionage practices in the 1950s but not like your typical cloak-and-dagger. Rather, these are explained - interestingly but mechanically - as part of the larger narrative around who Colonel Abel was.

I found the book to be a fast read and quite enjoyable. I'm not sure that the courtroom procedural aspects would appeal to a broader audience, who might want to skip through and then read closely the last third of the book. ( )
1 vote davidpwhelan | Nov 3, 2015 |
Showing 3 of 3
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Donovan, James B.primary authorall editionsconfirmed
Matthews, JasonForewordsecondary authorall editionsconfirmed
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The #1 New York Times bestseller and subject of the acclaimed major motion picture Bridge of Spies directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Tom Hanks as James B. Donovan. Originally published in 1964, this is the "enthralling...truly remarkable" (The New York Times Book Review) insider account of the Cold War spy exchange--with a new foreword by Jason Matthews, New York Times bestselling author of Red Sparrow and Palace of Treason. In the early morning of February 10, 1962, James B. Donovan began his walk toward the center of the Glienicke Bridge, the famous "Bridge of Spies" which then linked West Berlin to East. With him, walked Rudolf Ivanovich Abel, master spy and for years the chief of Soviet espionage in the United States. Approaching them from the other side, under equally heavy guard, was Francis Gary Powers, the American U-2 spy plane pilot famously shot down by the Soviets, whose exchange for Abel Donovan had negotiated. These were the strangers on a bridge, men of East and West, representatives of two opposed worlds meeting in a moment of high drama. Abel was the most gifted, the most mysterious, the most effective spy in his time. His trial, which began in a Brooklyn United States District Court and ended in the Supreme Court of the United States, chillingly revealed the methods and successes of Soviet espionage. No one was better equipped to tell the whole absorbing history than James B. Donovan, who was appointed to defend one of his country's enemies and did so with scrupulous skill. In Strangers on a Bridge, the lead prosecutor in the Nuremburg Trials offers a clear-eyed and fast-paced memoir that is part procedural drama, part dark character study and reads like a noirish espionage thriller. From the first interview with Abel to the exchange on the bridge in Berlin--and featuring unseen photographs of Donovan and Abel as well as trial notes and sketches drawn from Abel's prison cell--here is an important historical narrative that is "as fascinating as it is exciting" (The Houston Chronicle).

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