Area 51

An Uncensored History of America's Top Secret Military Base

By: Annie Jacobsen

Narrated by: Annie Jacobsen

Length: 16 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

This "compellingly hard-hitting" best seller from a Pulitzer Prize finalist gives listeners the complete untold story of the top-secret military base for the first time. (New York Times).

It is the most famous military installation in the world. And it doesn't exist. Located a mere s75 miles outside of Las Vegas in Nevada's desert, the base has never been acknowledged by the US government - but Area 51 has captivated imaginations for decades.

Myths and hypotheses about Area 51 have long abounded, thanks to the intense secrecy enveloping it. Some claim it is home to aliens, underground tunnel systems, and nuclear facilities. Others believe that the lunar landing itself was filmed there. The prevalence of these rumors stems from the fact that no credible insider has ever divulged the truth about his time inside the base. Until now.

Annie Jacobsen had exclusive access to 19 men who served the base proudly and secretly for decades and are now aged 75-92, and unprecedented access to 55 additional military and intelligence personnel, scientists, pilots, and engineers linked to the secret base, 32 of whom lived and worked there for extended periods. In Area 51, Jacobsen shows us what has really gone on in the Nevada desert, from testing nuclear weapons to building super-secret, supersonic jets to pursuing the War on Terror.

This is the first book based on interviews with eye witnesses to Area 51 history, which makes it the seminal work on the subject. Filled with formerly classified information that has never been accurately decoded for the public, Area 51 weaves the mysterious activities of the top-secret base into a gripping narrative, showing that facts are often more fantastic than fiction, especially when the distinction is almost impossible to make.

©2011 Annie Jacobson (P)2011 Hachette

not about UFOs

interesting, sometimes shocking history of secret military research. Only a brief section on Roswell. She thinks it was a Russian hoax.

This is a very good book, I keep listening to it.

Would you consider the audio edition of Area 51 to be better than the print version?

I listen in the care and keep reviewing important sections. It is more than Area 51. It is a world history book starting with WWII and coming to the present time. An enjoyable good read.

What does Annie Jacobsen bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She brought it to life and made it real for me.

opens another layer

a great listen. Well narrated with lots of new info for area 51 fans and sceptics

Eyes opened up !

Annie has opened my eyes and mind with this Audible. Very easy to follow given the technical subject of this book. 😯

Well worth listening to.

Very informative and kept my interest.
My complaints are: The narrator mispronounced the state of Nevada hundreds of times all the way throughout the audio book. This drove me crazy being from the state of Nevada. Also she said one of our WW2 pilots was dogfighting a Japanese jet fighter during the war. The Japanese did not use a jet fighter in WW2. They only had a prototype like the German ME-262 that was never used in combat. This made me question the rest of the facts in the book. Other than that, I liked the book.

Grabs you with the title, mostly serves history

The most interesting part of this book is the last few chapters, where the scoop on classified stuff about area 51 is served up.

Most of the book is a history of the development of the U2, Oxcart / SR71 blackbird, and a summary of some of the relationships between the air force, CIA, and the department of energy / atomic energy commission, focusing in particular on the cold war era.

Some reviews question the quality of the research into this book, and I plan on following up to understand what parts of this book are historically accurate.

Wished the author had spent more time on the classified stuff, but it's understandable that this info is probably impossible to find.

A different take

This book about area 51 agrees with my other readings about that part of the black world. The account of Roswell flying saucer and the aliens being from the USSR was a first for me. Well written and narrated, I would it recommend it to others.

The Truth Behind Roswell and Area 51-Fascinating!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Recommended for those who are curious about the history of UFOs, black projects, the CIA, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and much more. By accessing recently declassified documents, and through numerous interviews, Jacobsen is able to explain what really did happen at Area 51 from the 1940s through the 1980s. A flying saucer really did crash near Roswell and the truth shocked me simply because it was not at all what I expected. I was always skeptical about the legitimacy of reverse engineering on a flying saucer but no longer. Don't jump to conclusions though--it is not what you probably expect.

Reality trumps fiction again.

Where does Area 51 rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?

This book is compelling and ranks among the top titles I have listened to: and I am, I feel, quite discriminating.

What other book might you compare Area 51 to and why?

I cannot readily think of another book that has captured my attention in quite the same way: the topic and its coverage are unforgettable.

What does Annie Jacobsen bring to the story that you wouldn???t experience if you just read the book?

The author brings an objectivity, persistence, and clarity to one of the most mysterious issues of the past 60 years.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

An enigma of military history and governmental intelligence finally elucidated.

Any additional comments?

If I would recommend one book (and I will) to my friends and colleagues, this is the one.

loved it.

It was very informative and interesting. I really loved it. just need more when is it coming?