Publisher: Roaring Brook Press

Copyright Date: 2020

Edition Date: 2020 Release Date: 01/21/20

Pages: xvii, 158 pages

ISBN: 1-250-19917-4

ISBN 13: 978-1-250-19917-1

Dewey: 364.1

LCCN: 2019941011

Dimensions: 22 cm.

Subject Heading:
Ames, Aldrich Hazen,. 1941-. Juvenile literature.
Ames, Aldrich Hazen,. 1941-.
United States. Central Intelligence Agency. Juvenile literature.
United States. Central Intelligence Agency.
Espionage, Soviet. United States. History. 20th century. Juvenile literature.
Espionage, Soviet. United States. History. 20th century.

Language: English

Bibliography Index/Note: Includes bibliographical references (pages [146]-150) and index.

Word Count: 22,210

Reading Level: 6.9

Interest Level: 3-6

Accelerated Reader: reading level: 6.9 / points: 4.0 / quiz: 507134 / grade: Middle Grades

In Catching a Russian Spy , Bryan Denson presents the story of the FBI's investigation of Aldrich Ames, and brings to life Agent Les Wiser, Jr., the agent who helped bring him to justice. Aldrich H. "Rick" Ames was a 31-year veteran of the CIA. He was also a Russian spy. By the time Ames was arrested in 1994, he had betrayed the identities of dozens and caused the deaths of ten agents. The notorious KGB (and later the Russian intelligence service, SVR) paid him millions of dollars. Agent Leslie G. "Les" Wiser, Jr. ran the FBI's Nightmover investigation tasked with uncovering a mole in the CIA. The team worked night and day to collect evidence--sneaking into Ames' home, hiding a homing beacon in his Jaguar, and installing a video camera above his desk. But the spy kept one step ahead, even after agents followed him to Bogota, Colombia. In a crazy twist, the FBI would score its biggest clue from inside Ames' garbage can. At the time of his arrest on February 21, 1994, he had compromised more highly-classified CIA assets than any other agent in history. First in the FBI Files, a true-crime series for middle grade readers that follows FBI agents behind the scenes as they work to keep Americans safe.