13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi
Score Modern
What it's about
Mitchell Zuckoff tells the true account of the 2012 attack on the American diplomatic compound and CIA annex in Benghazi, Libya, from the perspective of the security contractors who fought back through the night.
Why it's worth reading
It spent 2 weeks at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. It's a gripping, ground-level account of the battle.
You'll love it if you liked
Lone Survivor
Black Hawk Down
The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11Good to know
It sticks to what happened on the ground, not the politics afterward. It was adapted into a 2016 film.
By the numbers
- Readers84 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller41 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #122 of the 198 history books we rank
- #453 of the 1,573 modern books we rank
- #873 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Dark, True story, Gripping
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Quick answers
Is 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi worth reading?
Yes. It spent 2 weeks at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. It ranks #873 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 74.2 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi about?
Mitchell Zuckoff tells the true account of the 2012 attack on the American diplomatic compound and CIA annex in Benghazi, Libya, from the perspective of the security contractors who fought back through the night.
How long does it take to read 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi?
About 8 hours (325 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after 13 Hours: The Inside Account of What Really Happened in Benghazi?
If you liked it, try Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell with Patrick Robinson, Black Hawk Down by Mark Bowden or The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 by Lawrence Wright.