I am currently reading The Charm School, by Nelson Demille. It is about a top-secret KGB training school, who used shot down and MIA U.S. Air Force pilots to train KGB students to look, act, sound, and think like Americans. The idea being that they would be able to infiltrate the U.S. without detection.
Has anyone else read this book, and does anyone know whether a “charm school”, like the one in the book, actually existed?
I have read the book and found it entertaining, but felt there were major holes in the plot.
Rumors during the Cold War suggested and defectors since have claimed that in fact Russia had training schools which were very similar to American living situations. Training personnel were suggested to be either American defectors or more often former field agents and/or diplomatic personnel.
I have read that many years back, and while it is fiction, the KGB (i heard) had training areas where English slang and intonations were the speech of the day. No cites, just foggy thoughts. But a good book premise nonetheless.