Rating: 
Summary: Gripping story of Fred Cuny and Chechnya
Review: A great work of non-fiction that is part adventure in Chechnya and part biography of Fred Cuny, the "Master of Disaster". I first encountered Anderson in an article that appeared in Harper's in 1997 and have been on the lookout for this book ever since. Aside from a truly compelling story (Fred Cuny was, no doubt, larger than life), Anderson brings considerable writing skills to this book. He joins a handful of others (William Langewiesche, Robert D. Kaplan) who have that rare ability to inform the reader in an engaging style no matter what the subject is.This is not just a biography of Cuny. It is a story of the tragedy in Chechnya as well. Anderson informs on both counts without pushing a particular agenda. What is amazing is that he does this in spite of the fact that begins the book by confessing that he believes Cuny is a genuine hero. Yet he leaves the reader to form their own judgment on this and other aspects of the story. Some have complained that the book is repetitive near the end (it seems as though the book were actually written to be serialized in five or six long magazine pieces, which would explain the repetition). The bottom line here is that the repetition that I noticed was either helpful and/or satisfying from a literary standpoint. Aside from the author's great writing, you should read this book as a responsible citizen of the world and member of the human race. Fred Cuny may not have been Mother Theresa when it came to his ego, but his heart was definitely in the right place, and that big Texas personality got things done that, as Anderson and others have pointed out, saved lives.
Rating: 
Summary: Maintains its relevancy - a great read
Review: Anderson's book is two great tales in one: a brief history of the Chechnyan conflict; and the amazing life of Fred Cuny. Writing this review right after the conclusion of the recent Chechen-led, mass-hostage-taking in Moscow, I have come to fully appreciate the continued relevance of Scott Anderson's great piece of journalism. Chechnya was, in Fred Cuny's words, the "scariest place I've ever seen." [Read about this guy's incredible life and you'll understand the magnitude of that statement.] The book is filled with many tales of the desperation, fighting power, guile and pluck of the Chechnyan people. In short, it's no surprise to me (and certainly not to Scott Anderson, I bet) that despite Vladimir Putin's assiduous efforts, the terror has made its way to Moscow. If you think one life can't make a difference, then you don't know about Fred Cuny. What he did in Sarajevo during the Bosian conflict will blow your mind.
Rating:
Summary: Heartnbreaking and Fascinating -- but Ellusive
Review: Even though I'd heard of Fred Cuny from a PBS Frontline show about him, I wouldn't have been likely to pick up this biography and account of his dissapearance except that friend had strongly reccomended it. He was a man with a huge compassion toward people in need, and had a comparably huge ego. Anderson makes it clear that Cuny had large dreams, and sometimes altered details about his background and accomplishments to maintain his own mythology. A revolutionary in the field of disaster relief, he was one of the first to recognize the challenges in designing and implementing relief strategies in the post-Cold War era of regional conflicts that would devestate civil societes around the globe. When he dissapeared in Chechnya in 1995 with three colleagues, it eventually triggered a manhunt that escalated to the presidential level between the US and Russia. It's this mystery that drives the book. Anderson's account begins in standard journalistic fashion, with a "teaser" opening chapter relating the basics of Cuny's mysterious dissapearance. He then goes back to construct a biography of this remarkable man and the disaster relief wolrd he shouldered his way into. There are some interesting episodes along the way, such as Cuny's precience about what would unfold in Somalia, his dominant role in Operation Provide Comfort in Iraq, and his ingenuity in Bosnia--but eveything builds toward Chechnya. Here, Anderson is particularly strong at capturing the horrifying randomness of the war between the Russian army and Chechen sepratists. The vital point about this war, which is made perfectly clear, is that there are a plethora of groups with subtle alliances and unfathomable agendas. There are units of Russian army conscripts (who would rather be anywhere else), elite professional soldier units (who are frightenly autonomous), commando units, Russian intelligence agents (remarkably inept), relief workers, Chechen guerillas, Chechen mafia, regular bandits, politicans in neighboring provinces, refugees, and in the midst of this malestorm of interests strode Fred Cuny. In detailing this confusion of interests, and the multitude of rumor and disinformation concerning Cuny's dissapearance, Anderson does tend to repeat himself. This gets kind of old, and one wishes for a bit more rigerous editing throughout. His technique of building up various theories only to be able knock them down later also gets somewhat tiresome, but is understandable. In the end, Anderson travels to Chechnya and endangers his life to try and track down the truth and must be commended for that. Unfortunately, as one might expect, many of the people who might have known something of the truth about the matter are killed along way. Anderson's hypothesis that Cuny was dissapeared on the order of Chechan President Dudayev is reasonably convinving, but ultimately ephemeral and unprovable. While Dudayev is obviously unapproachable on matter, one wishes Anderson had spent some time trying to track down Cuny's driver, a man who melted away.
Rating:
Summary: Clear and compelling
Review: Having recently completed Anderson's marvellous novel "Triage" I was expecting big things of this book. The best indication that I can give of its success is that I feel that I have in some small way emerged from this account of a complex man a great deal more enlightened about both Cuny as a real person and the largely neglected world that he inhabited - and attempted to "save". Andreson has a real ability to write in a manner that is at once highly informative and yet clear and approachable. In the book's acknowledgement he writes of his occasional despair as he attempted to shape his wide ranging material. It hardly shows in the finished product. What repetition there is seemes to me entirely appropriate in light of the endlessly shifting alliances through which both he and others searching for Cuny in Chechnya are forced to navigate. In spite of his failings (real and speculative) Cuny seems to have been a truly great man, often achieving extraordinary things in the aid of those most desperately in need. His grim end is a most apalling conclusion to a noteworthy career - though given his personality, perhaps a not entirely unexpected one. It's a measure of the author's achievement that we can share in this sense of loss and urgency that the century into which we are entering is more dangerously unpredictable than ever. We need many more men like Fred Cuny - particularly in high office. And we need more authors like Scott Anderson who are not afraid to write truthfully of what they see on the ground, unfettered by ideology or hidden agendas. I found it refreshing that he didn't hide behind a veneer of "objectivity", selectively using others to voice opinions that are secretely his. Throughout this compelling narrative I felt that I was in the company of a real person, and while I was at all times aware of his "take" on events I never felt preached to and even felt free to argue with his conclusions on the odd occasion. I also felt, by the way, that there are some real similarities between Anderson and "Mark", the central character in "Triage", far beyond the simple fact they they shared the same job. If you have any interest at all in the world of relief agencies or in how individuals really can perform true good in our grey and complex world, this is a book to consider. It's well written, canny, human and compassionate without being preachy. Compelling reading.
Rating:
Summary: excellent real life adventure story of a little known hero.
Review: I first learned of Fred Cuny and his work and subsequent disapearance in Chechnya from the PBS "Frontline" show. I was happy to see this book at the store and grabbed it immediately. I was not disappointed. Even though I knew the basic story, the book gave much more in-depth analysis and background on Mr. Cuny and his disapearence. Any fan of action and intrigue will enjoy this book and Fred himself seems to be a real life action hero as described by all in the book. I especially liked reading about Mr. Cuny's earlier exploits in Sarajevo and Kurdistan. Towards the end of the book there is quite a lot of repetetive analysis by the author which seems unecessary. I think the book could have been about 50 pages shorter, but other than that, an excellent book.
Rating:
Summary: Mired in Mystery
Review: I selected this book because I'd read the author's previous work, wanted to know more about Chechnya, and was curious about a man who would try "to save the world." Anderson's telling of the tale of Fred Cuny is illuminating and thought-provoking. I wanted to share this story with others who also knew little about the world where Cuny lived and worked. The continuing unrest in Chechnya makes this book as timely as it was on the day it was published.
Scott Anderson leads the reader down the shadowy path taken by Fred Cuny and leaves one with the certainty that uncertainty like that faced by Cuny still prevails in many parts of the world. Recent events demonstate that even between the relatively safe borders of the USA, terror remains a daily concern. The people of Chechnya and other places where Fred Cuny worked to help others have known terror much longer.
Rating:
Summary: A great read, but with some intensely irritating errors
Review: The book reads like a thunderclap. It starts quickly and picks up pace, holding the reader's fascination the entire time. Anderseon summarizes the humanitarian aid community and the situation in Russia well. (Full disclosure: this reviewer is an expatriate in Russia working with refugees.) The errors in the book are therefore almost unforgiveable. It's simply incredible that someone who supposedly did so much research made such fundamental mistakes as: 1. Referring to the newly constructed Embassy--the one with all the bugs--as "miles" from the older Embassy where he was speaking with the Ambassador. The two buildings are separated by about three hundred meters, and are visible to each other. 2. Referring to a "two-million" dollar ransom for Cuny on one page, and eleven pages later referring to the individual who made it as the man who demanded "three million" dollars. There are other errors as well, all of them inconsequential to the flow of the story and its overall conclusions. I must admit, however, that it left me wondering what other facts did he get wrong that I did not know about. A final quibble is that Anderson presents Cuny's positive achievements as simple facts. There is no doubt that Cuny achieved much during his life, and he did a lot of good, but he and his approach to humanitarian aid were (and still are) much more controversial than the author indicates. The people Anderson blithely dismisses as angry at Cuny's accusations of ineptitude should have been given a greater say on how -they- felt about -him-. This is minor, however, and simply means the reader should be aware that the author has a bias, which is neither surprising nor unexpected.
Rating:
Summary: A Real-life Mystery
Review: The title refers to Fred Cuny, a Texan who spent little time worrying about his own life and instead was obsessed with saving the lives of refugees and war victims around the world. Cuny began as an outsider in the international relief community, but his innovative ideas eventually overcame his brash attitude to revolutionize the profession. International war correspondent Scott Anderson has written an interesting biography of a modern hero. The first half of the book is spent on Cuny's life up until he went to Chechnya. This half of the book reads a little slow at times but is filled with interesting stories on Cuny's exploits in international relief efforts around the world. The second half of the book focuses on Cuny's invovlement with the brutal war in Chechnya, which Cuny called "the scariest place in the world." As a man who was always in search of a bigger adventure, Cuny was drawn to Chechnya even though most other relief workers avoided the war zone. Anderson does well explaining the brutality and uncertainty of the war. He documents Cuny's frustration with the Clinton administration's unquestionable support of Yeltsin and willful ignorance of the Chechen debacle. But Anderson is at his best recounting the unprecendented man hunt for Cuny and his companions after their disappearance; Anderson even probably risked his life to retrace Cuny's steps in his last fateful days. If you are looking for a real-life mystery or are interested in international relations or relief work, this book is for you. After you've finished, be sure to check out the PBS special [URL] that has brought even more to light after the book was published. But first read The Man Who Tried to Save the World for its indispensable background on an incredible contemporary: Fred Cuny.
Rating: 
Summary: a little less author, a little more Fred
Review: This is definitely a captivating tale about a horrid and bizarre situation, but one wishes for a little less of the author's not so interesting tale. The author strikes me as a bit too macho, exaggerating the risks and missing out on important details of Fred Cuny's life (focusing too much on the macho aspects that the author clearly favors). Definitely worth a read but don't be turned off by the author's overblown bravado.
Rating:
Summary: a little less author, a little more Fred
Review: This is definitely a captivating tale about a horrid and bizarre situation, but one wishes for a little less of the author's not so interesting tale. The author strikes me as a bit too macho, exaggerating the risks and missing out on important details of Fred Cuny's life (focusing too much on the macho aspects that the author clearly favors). Definitely worth a read but don't be turned off by the author's overblown bravado.
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