Summary of Douglas Laux & Ralph Pezzullo's Left of Boom

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 I was in Chicago with my girlfriend Kate, and I was nervous about meeting her friends. I was studying Pashtu full-time, and had just passed my competency exam. Something inside me released a burst of adrenaline. #2 I was scheduled to receive the weapons and other types of training required before going to a forward base. I was in Chicago, not DC, so I couldn’t march into headquarters and offer my assistance. I knew several young CIA officers assigned there and had trained with them at the Farm. #3 I was a freshman at the University of Indiana starting to pursue a course of study to become an optometrist. 9/11 changed my life, and I decided to change my major to political science, study Japanese and Chinese, and focus on learning about the world around me. #4 I was with the woman I loved, but I felt an impulse to grab a beer out of the mini fridge and down it. I reminded myself that I was with the woman I loved and told myself that I had to focus on making her happy for the next two days.