The Revolutionists

The Story of the Extremists Who Hijacked the 1970s

De: Jason Burke

Narrado por: Kristin Atherton

Brought to you by Penguin.

** SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE 2025 **

A thrilling and unprecedented account of the radicalism and political extremism that gripped the 1970s – a seismic decade that transformed the modern world.

In the 1970s, a network of extremists terrorised the West with intricately planned plane hijackings and hostage-takings. Among them were the glamorous Leila Khaled, hard-drinking Carlos the Jackal, and radical leftists of the Baader-Meinhof Gang. United by their hatred of Israel, capitalism and ‘Western imperialism’, they unleashed a series of audacious attacks that brought governments to their knees and glued the world to their tv screens.

Drawing on decades of research, recently declassified government files, secret documents, and first-hand interviews with hijackers, spies, witnesses and victims, Jason Burke takes us inside these often-deadly operations. Through the perpetrators’ eyes – and of the unrelenting agents who hunted them down – he uncovers a dark, complex world of loyalty, betrayal and commitment to change at any cost.

Pitching us into these tumultuous times, The Revolutionists reveals how a campaign led by secular leftist revolutionaries gave way to a far more lethal movement of conservative religious fanaticism that would dominate the decades to come. It is impossible to understand the world today without reading this book.

'Brilliant ... An astonishing window not just into the origins of modern terrorism but also into our own age' RORY STEWART

‘Extraordinary … told with cool authority and a novelist's eye for detail' RORY CARROLL, author of Killing Thatcher

'Riveting' LINDSEY HILSUM, International Editor, Channel 4 News

'A book that historians will be profiting from for many decades to come' TOM HOLLAND

‘As compelling as the best of spy thrillers’ FERGAL KEANE, BBC Correspondent and author of The Madness

© Jason Burke 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Reseñas de la Crítica

Brilliant, beautifully researched, observed and written. An astonishing window not just into the origins of modern terrorism but also into our own age (Rory Stewart, author of Politics on the Edge)

A kaleidoscopic sweep through an extraordinary era told with cool authority and a novelist's eye for detail. Burke is a master in the field (Rory Carroll, author of Killing Thatcher)

If journalism is the first draft of history, then this is its second draft. A book that historians will be consulting and profiting from for many decades to come (Tom Holland, author of Rubicon and host of The Rest Is History)

An excellent, deeply researched, fascinating chronicle of lethal Middle Eastern conspirators and absurd western killers that is as irresistible and unputdownable as it is astonishing and relevant

Riveting … [The Revolutionists] is an absorbing history of terrorism in Europe and the Middle East … A deeply researched, ambitious and elegantly written book

[A] huge, roving and painstakingly researched account of the rise of modern terrorism

Magisterial … The Revolutionists [is] such an engaging, intelligible guide through a dense geopolitical period

Jason Burke's meticulously researched book is peopled by an array of colourful characters from terrorists to idealists and double agents. By melding eye-witness accounts with a deep understanding of politics and modern history, he shows how the hijackings and political murders of the late twentieth century led to the turbulence of the 21st. It makes for a riveting read (Lindsey Hilsum, International Editor, Channel 4 News)

The Revolutionists is an incisive account of the rise of modern terrorism following the founding of the State of Israel. It manages to be both scholarly and engaging. A wonderful book for any reader interested in the Middle East and the curse of terror that has haunted the region - and the world - for too many years (Lawrence Wright, author of The Looming Tower)

Superb. In this deeply researched and grippingly told account of the ... radicals who held a gun to the head of Western governments in the 1970s, Burke confirms his credentials as our foremost commentator on modern terrorism (Saul David, author of Sky Warriors)