Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
3.5
Fascinating stuff. Has a pretty thorough overview of Waco and a few other incidents. The descriptions are detailed and seem authentic enough. It's not a manual, but gives plenty to think about in the communication field. It's surprising how critical the author is of crisis response and how much confusion and mismanagement exists on the scene, and how this has developed in the past 30 years. Noesner has undoubtedly had a big role in these improvements, but in the end it seemed a bit unlikely that he was always right about everything. That's the impression you'd get from the book, just a few examples of personal failure would have made for a good balance. Or maybe there really haven't been any, who knows.
Fascinating stuff. Has a pretty thorough overview of Waco and a few other incidents. The descriptions are detailed and seem authentic enough. It's not a manual, but gives plenty to think about in the communication field. It's surprising how critical the author is of crisis response and how much confusion and mismanagement exists on the scene, and how this has developed in the past 30 years. Noesner has undoubtedly had a big role in these improvements, but in the end it seemed a bit unlikely that he was always right about everything. That's the impression you'd get from the book, just a few examples of personal failure would have made for a good balance. Or maybe there really haven't been any, who knows.
informative
reflective
fast-paced
The writing in this book isn’t great, but I appreciated reading Noesner’s experiences. I mostly read this to read his comments about Waco and compare it to the recent dramatic documentary on Netflix, so I enjoyed hearing the actual story.
Couldn’t put it down!
Reading about well known standoffs from the guy behind the scenes was very intriguing. As with government agency, there will be different viewpoints and unfortunately these differing points of view were costly in Ruby Ridge and Waco. Ruby Ridge and Waco were well known events as we watched them unfold on television. Reading what happened behind the scenes was very eye opening. The other stories, though lesser known to me, were just as captivating. The idea that words matter, helping people feel understood matters and it can be the difference between life and death.
Reading about well known standoffs from the guy behind the scenes was very intriguing. As with government agency, there will be different viewpoints and unfortunately these differing points of view were costly in Ruby Ridge and Waco. Ruby Ridge and Waco were well known events as we watched them unfold on television. Reading what happened behind the scenes was very eye opening. The other stories, though lesser known to me, were just as captivating. The idea that words matter, helping people feel understood matters and it can be the difference between life and death.
Very matter of fact straight forward telling, which makes it a breeze to read. The Waco portion is very quick in one long chapter, so I suggest pairing it with David Thibodeaus book for both perspectives. Obviously has his own biases but he has been a strong advocate for negotiation or violence reduction in an extremely stressful and difficult job. Policing has a horrible track record of excessive force mistakes, and there need to be people on the inside forcing change.
I was impressed with how many historical events he had been involved with in some way directly or indirectly close to. Close but not at Ruby Ridge, key negotiator lead at Waco, many militia, seperatist, and hostage taking events, the DC sniper attacks.
Only handling that left a poor taste in my mouth was his commentary on the Puerto Rican island of Vieques. Cancer and damage rates to the local community have been much higher than the general island population after the navy shelled it for target practice, and losing a Navy base jobs is brutal to the local community. No good choice but the protestors stood up for better treatment.
I was impressed with how many historical events he had been involved with in some way directly or indirectly close to. Close but not at Ruby Ridge, key negotiator lead at Waco, many militia, seperatist, and hostage taking events, the DC sniper attacks.
Only handling that left a poor taste in my mouth was his commentary on the Puerto Rican island of Vieques. Cancer and damage rates to the local community have been much higher than the general island population after the navy shelled it for target practice, and losing a Navy base jobs is brutal to the local community. No good choice but the protestors stood up for better treatment.
I used to have a dream of being in law enforcement. So much so that my educational background is in criminal justice administration. I would have loved to have had the opportunity to be in the FBI, especially in the line of work Mr. Noesner was in. This was a fascinating and interesting read which reminded me of the reasons I had that dream so long ago. I found his honesty refreshing and his experiences told in such a way that kept you interested and vested in the outcomes. His candor in sharing the good and bad decisions felt incredibly authentic. A worthy, well constructed read.
So I can't mark this book as read b/c I gave up about 40 pages in. This writer is so full of himself and always has to work in the ways he was awesome to every story that I just couldn't listen to him. Of course we know you think you are awesome -- you wrote a book about yourself. So stick to the facts more and tell a story. Disappointing.
FBI Hostage Negotiator Gary Noesner memoirs his tenure with the FBI as he grew the negotiation units within the agency.
A friend recommended me this book and while it's certainly outside the range of books I would pick for myself, I'm glad I read it.
Light read. Context is well supplied; I didn't have a background in the situations described but was well caught up to speed. Writing is perfunctory but clear. Stories themselves are fascinating and I gained a greater understanding the interworking of managing hostage situations. Perhaps the greatest appeal of this book is Noesner's in-depth narration of the Waco siege.
Would recommend.
A friend recommended me this book and while it's certainly outside the range of books I would pick for myself, I'm glad I read it.
Light read. Context is well supplied; I didn't have a background in the situations described but was well caught up to speed. Writing is perfunctory but clear. Stories themselves are fascinating and I gained a greater understanding the interworking of managing hostage situations. Perhaps the greatest appeal of this book is Noesner's in-depth narration of the Waco siege.
Would recommend.
This book was recommended by a guest speaker in my school counseling masters program. It seems like an odd direction for school counseling, but Noesner's take on the process and purpose of negotiating actually makes a lot of sense. A person in crisis isn't thinking clearly and the best thing to do is to lengthen the conversation to allow time to do its work of clearing the mind for a peaceful resolution. This applies in the sieges and hostage situations in the book, but also in more common cases of heightened feeling and importance that happen in the life of a counselor.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced