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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “Brilliant book. It's very moving and nearly impossible to put down. Definitely worth the read.” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “I originally read this book for in order to get information for my calculus class project which was on cryptography. This book talks about cryptography during World War II. The main character was to go to war but ends up working for the Special Operations Executive (SOE) an operation set up by...” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“I originally read this book for in order to get information for my calculus class project which was on cryptography. This book talks about cryptography during World War II. The main character was to go to war but ends up working for the Special Operations Executive (SOE) an operation set up by Churchill to break the Axis codes. The codes were all base on poems, the codes were written on silk and then sewn to the clothing of the Agent, therefore if the agent was interrogated the clothes would withstand the German security-checks. Mark’s (the main character) job was to brief the agents on their code before they were sent into enemy territory. This was in a way hard for him because those agents had a low life-expectancy and were captured and tortured in many occasions. I really enjoyed this book and it taught me a few things about cryptography and the life of WWII agents that I was not aware of before. ”
LILIYA B wrote this review Sunday, March 29 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No1 of 1 members found this review helpful“Brilliant book. It's very moving and nearly impossible to put down. Definitely worth the read.”
Hilda wrote this review Friday, September 26 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
1 of 1 members found this review helpful“I admit that I am perhaps partial to books about spies. This book, about the mechanics /behind/ spying, the codes and work of the people who dealt with all the information the spies gathered, is fascinating. It's not just a boring informational text, though - it's also a bright and energetic story, full of humor. The author is in no way pompous, being perfectly happy to relate his own absurdities as well as those of the people around him. His curious nature and delight at discoveries makes this book an incredible pleasure to read - I recommend it without reservations.”
Hannah R wrote this review Thursday, February 28 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
1 of 1 members found this review helpful“What a fun read! This man is obviously a genius at coding, and I was hard put to keep up with some of his explanations of making/cracking codes, but it didn't matter. He writes in such an approachable way, and is so willing to laugh at himself that it is all just a fun romp, yet still makes its point about spying in World War II and the difficulty of coordinating efforts between countries. All in all a pleasurable romp with just the right amount of seriousness to temper it.”
Lisa S wrote this review Monday, February 25 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Really interesting perspective on the war. His style flows well (especially for a book on codes), although sometimes, in trying to be clever or discrete, he gets a little oblique in the narrative. Makes it a bit hard to follow at times: usually on an emotional level, not a coding level. I liked it. ”
ninamann wrote this review Friday, September 7 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A can't-put-it-down book! Marks's style is light and engaging (perhaps too light? Things went too fast in the beginning). I was drawn in and captivated by the story of deception, codemaking, and the utterly overwhelming heroics of WWII. Initially, I was disappointed because he didn't go into the details of how the codes worked. By the end, I cared too much about the lives of the agents in the field to care.
Brian Dewey wrote this review Wednesday, May 30 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
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1 of 1 members found this review helpful“It's not often history books are fun--especially when they're about war. Leo finds the little things that keep people fighting, the things that push people on, and the many lost souls along the way.
Opalescence wrote this review Monday, May 7 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Read. It.
Now.
/transmission.”
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