Overview

A fascinating exploration of the uncrackable codes and secret cyphers that helped win wars, spark revolutions and change the faces of nations. There have been secret codes since before the Old Testament, and there were secret codes in the Old Testament, too. Almost as soon as writing was invented, so too were the devious means to hide messages and keep them under the wraps of secrecy. In The Hidden History of Code Breaking, Sinclair McKay explores these uncrackable codes, secret cyphers and hidden messages from across time to tell a new history of a secret world. From the temples of Ancient Greece to the court of Elizabeth I; from antique manuscripts whose codes might hold prophecies of doom to the modern realm of quantum mechanics, we will see how a few concealed words could help to win wars, spark revolutions and even change the faces of great nations. Here is the complete guide to the hidden world of codebreaking, with opportunities for you to see if you could have cracked some of the trickiest puzzles and lip-chewing codes ever created.

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9781639364343

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Re-create[s] the unique atmosphere of this extraordinary place... remarkable. -- Daily Telegraph (London) This very readable and competent book captures well the extraordinary atmosphere of eccentrics working hard together in almost complete secrecy. -- The Guardian A portrait of one of the most remarkable brain factories the world has ever seen. --Max Hastings, journalist and author, former editor-in-chief of the Daily Telegraph A stunning plunge into the social and political complexities surrounding the men and women who broke the Enigma code. A gripping read. -- Chester Nez and Judith Schiess Avila, authors of Code Talker Praise for The Secret Life of Codebreakers An eloquent tribute to a quite remarkable group of men and women, whose like we will not see again. -- Mail On Sunday

A portrait of one of the most remarkable brain factories the world has ever seen. --Max Hastings, author of A stunning plunge into the social and political complexities surrounding the men and women who broke the Enigma code. A gripping read. -- Chester Nez and Judith Schiess Avila, authors of Code Talker Re-create[s] the unique atmosphere of this extraordinary place... remarkable. -- Daily Telegraph (London) This very readable and competent book captures well the extraordinary atmosphere of eccentrics working hard together in almost complete secrecy. -- The Guardian Praise for The Secret Life of Codebreakers An eloquent tribute to a quite remarkable group of men and women, whose like we will not see again. -- Mail On Sunday

"""Re-create[s] the unique atmosphere of this extraordinary place... remarkable.""-- ""Daily Telegraph (London)"" ""This very readable and competent book captures well the extraordinary atmosphere of eccentrics working hard together in almost complete secrecy.""-- ""The Guardian"" ""A portrait of one of the most remarkable brain factories the world has ever seen."" --Max Hastings, journalist and author, former editor-in-chief of the Daily Telegraph ""A stunning plunge into the social and political complexities surrounding the men and women who broke the Enigma code. A gripping read.""-- ""Chester Nez and Judith Schiess Avila, authors of Code Talker"" Praise for The Secret Life of Codebreakers ""An eloquent tribute to a quite remarkable group of men and women, whose like we will not see again."" -- ""Mail On Sunday"""

Author Information

Sinclair McKay is the London-based literary critic for the Telegraph and the Spectator and is the author of The Secret Life of Codebreakers and Bletchley Park Brainteasers.

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