Wednesday, May 30, 2012, 7:30 pm: In Association with RAND Corporation, Seth Jones and NPR’s Mike Shuster on The Pursuit of Al Qa’ida Since 9/11

Tickets, $20.  At RAND, 1776 Main Street, Santa Monica 90401.  Plenty of free parking underground at RAND Corporation, for people who register before May 29.  Those who register or show up on May 30 can find plenty of free parking on the street directly in front of RAND Corporation’s headquarters.  To make reservations, click here or email us at reservations@writersblocpresents.com.

The difference between fictional thrillers and Seth Jones’ new book, Hunting in the Shadows: The Pursuit of Al Qa’ida Since 9/11, is that Seth Jones’ thriller is nonfiction. For lovers of the spy thriller genre, or the newer fictional genre pertaining to global terrorism, you’ll wonder when the next fictional thriller bestseller will credit Seth Jones’ terrific new study.  Seth Jones may not be a bestselling thriller writer just yet, but he produces heart-stopping nonfiction literature. He’s an expert in terrorism, counter-terrorism, Afghanistan, and Al Qa’ida strategy.  He’s an expert on Al Qa’ida’s waves of terrorism, from the attacks on  U.S. embassies in Africa in 1998 to September 11, 2001.  Other waves followed, including attacks throughout Iraq in the years following 9/11.  And Jones is an expert in counterterrorism—including our own government’s efforts, as well as other governments’ efforts, such as Britain’s, to cripple terrorist efforts.  Jones covers terrorist attacks here and throughout Europe, and his information on the intelligence services is fascinating from historical, cultural and political perspectives.  Seth Jones is a scholar and senior analyst at RAND Corporation, and was a senior advisor at U.S. Special Operations Command.  If Hunting in the Shadows were a novel, no one would believe it.

It is fair to say that few journalists know the intricacies of the Middle East as well as does Mike Shuster.  A reporter with NPR since 1980, Shuster has covered wars in Iraq and Iran, the Intifadas in Israel, September 11, Afghanistan, Africa, and South Asia, including India and Pakistan. He is considered to be one of the most experienced Middle Eastern correspondents in the world, and has won numerous prestigious awards for his distinguished reporting.

Tickets, $20.  At RAND, 1776 Main Street, Santa Monica 90401.  Plenty of free parking underground at RAND Corporation, for people who register before May 29.  Those who register or show up on May 30 can find plenty of free parking on the street directly in front of RAND Corporation’s headquarters.  To make reservations, click here or email us at reservations@writersblocpresents.com .