Bob Delaney Books
Surviving the Shadows
Surviving the Shadows is a gripping and insightful exploration of PTSD, which has risen to crisis levels and is an issue Delaney knows firsthand. He developed the condition as a young New Jersey State Trooper in the mid-1970s, following a landmark, three-year undercover investigation of the Genovese and Bruno crime families.
That experience was chronicled in the critically acclaimed 2008 book, Covert: My Years Infiltrating the Mob, co-authored by national award-winning journalist Dave Scheiber and named one of the best books of the year by USA Today. Delaney and Scheiber collaborate again in Surviving the Shadows, which tells the inspiring stories of members of the military, law enforcement, emergency service workers, and civilians who have grappled with PTSD and how they have made strides toward healing. Weaving in his own perspective, along with insights from doctors engaged in pioneering work with PTSD, Delaney equips sufferers and those close to them with important tools and vital knowledge.
As a leader in the PTSD education and awareness movement, Delaney has presented before members of law enforcement, firefighters, and emergency service workers for the past three decades. He visited and worked with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2009 and 2010 and was brought to Fort Hood by the base commander, General Robert W. Cone, following the tragic shooting rampage in 2009. More recently, he presented his unique message of hope and healing to law enforcement groups in Tampa following the shooting deaths of two officers last summer, and earlier this month spoke to the St. Petersburg Police Department after two officers were slain in the line of duty.
Surviving the Shadows, to be released late summer, is already winning high praise nationally:
“Bob Delaney helps to shine the light of truth on who we really are. Filled with examples of courage, wisdom, and innovation, Surviving the Shadows is a must-read for anyone in the military, anyone associated with the military, or anyone protected by the military. As Americans, it’s our duty to understand this battlefield.”—Nate Self, Army Ranger, Captain (ret.), Decorated Iraq and Afghanistan War Hero, author of Two Wars: One Hero’s Fight on Two Fronts—Abroad and Within
“The news Bob Delaney brings to those who are challenged by PTSD, and those of us who care for them, is poignant, up to date, well earned, and maybe life saving: You are not alone; sharing yourself with others can transform your very existence. Bob Delaney is the real deal. The stories he tells can help you to heal.”—James S. Gordon, M.D., author of Unstuck: Your Guide to the Seven-Stage Journey Out of Depression, Founder and Director of The Center for Mind-Body Medicine; served as Chairman of the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy.
Click to read PDF Review of Book.
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Covert
As an undercover operative in Project Alpha for 3 years, Bob Delaney infiltrated organized crime rings in New Jersey, which ultimately led to the conviction of over 30 Mafia criminals. Delaney’s heroic performance during his perilous assignment represents the finest traditions of the New Jersey State Police. My father, the first superintendent of the New Jersey State Police Department, would have been proud of him.
–General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, U.S. Army, Retired
My undercover life story and NBA career have been featured in a number of national newspaper articles – all of which I’m proud to say wound up as award-winners – as well as television segments on HBO, ESPN and ABC…
Watch the Covert Trailer below…
My undercover life story and NBA career have been featured in a number of national newspaper articles – all of which I’m proud to say wound up as award-winners – as well as television segments on HBO, ESPN and ABC. Over the years, so many people have said to me, “You should write a book.”
Now I have – entitled Covert: My Years Infiltrating the Mob, with Dave Scheiber and foreword by Hall of Famer Bill Walton.
This story will take you through my formative years, my entry into law enforcement and selection to an undercover assignment that changed the Mob and, in the process, changed me. You will read about the emotional carnage I endured in the aftermath of a landmark investigation called Project Alpha; how the constant danger I faced for nearly three years shaped the person I would become; how Bob Delaney, a young New Jersey State Trooper, was secretly transformed into trucking company president and Mob “earner” Bobby Covert.
I know – it’s a catchy name for an undercover agent but there was no joke intended. “Covert Operations” was not a term widely used in the mid-1970s .The truth is, my undercover name was taken from a real person; Robert Allen Covert, who died at birth in 1948 and came back to life through me in 1975.
I’ve been humbled by the outpouring of responses we’ve received from folks reading the galley. Bob Ley, one of ESPN’s founding anchors, said he “devoured the book” in two days and called it “powerful.” A former New Jersey State Trooper, Bob Ferguson, told me he couldn’t put the book down and finished reading it in one sitting. Hall of Fame basketball coach Hubie Brown shared with me that he read Covert in two connecting flights across the country and labeled it “terrific.”
The subculture of Organized Crime, La Cosa Nostra, the Mob or whatever name you want to give it, is an alluring one. These are the criminals Americans love to hate. I lived in that subculture and understand it. Covert will take you inside the Mob through my eyes and as Bill Walton said in the foreword, it is ”one heck of a journey.” My therapy in finding a way back to mainstream life was the game of my youth – basketball. It gave me a peace that I had lost when I was living the Covert life. Basketball gave me a new profession as well, one that I’ve had for the past twenty-plus years as an NBA Referee.
It has been exciting, emotional, exhausting and fun writing this book. I look forward to sharing my unique life story – as both Delaney and Covert – with you.
I coined a phrase years ago. Some people go through experiences, while other people grow through experiences. I hope Covert does that for you. I know it did for me.