The Secret Life of Bletchley Park
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
'McKay's book is an eloquent tribute to a quite remarkable group of men and women, whose like we will not see again.' Four stars **** (Mail On Sunday )
'I found this a truly breathtaking, eye-opening book.' (A. N. Wilson Reader's Digest )
'Mckay has succeeded in honouring a genuinely remarkable group of people in a solid, often entertaining and above all warm-hearted way.' (Daily Mail )
'It is their stories, and the humbling thought of what their dedication to duty achieved, that make this book worth reading.' Four stars **** (Daily Telegraph )
'A remarkably faithful account of what we did, why it mattered, and how it all felt at the time.' (The Guardian )
'It is all so indelibly - and movingly - British.' Five stars ***** (Seven (Sunday Telegraph) )
'Intriguing oral history…with an anecdotal style McKay offers new insights into what life was like at the famous station’ (Who Do You Think You Are magazine )
‘A telling and fascinating account of an extraordinary war’ (Good Book Guide )
'Amazing compendium of first-hand memories' (Sunday Express )
'I found this a truly breathtaking, eye-opening book.' (A. N. Wilson Reader's Digest )
'Mckay has succeeded in honouring a genuinely remarkable group of people in a solid, often entertaining and above all warm-hearted way.' (Daily Mail )
'It is their stories, and the humbling thought of what their dedication to duty achieved, that make this book worth reading.' Four stars **** (Daily Telegraph )
'A remarkably faithful account of what we did, why it mattered, and how it all felt at the time.' (The Guardian )
'It is all so indelibly - and movingly - British.' Five stars ***** (Seven (Sunday Telegraph) )
'Intriguing oral history…with an anecdotal style McKay offers new insights into what life was like at the famous station’ (Who Do You Think You Are magazine )
‘A telling and fascinating account of an extraordinary war’ (Good Book Guide )
'Amazing compendium of first-hand memories' (Sunday Express )
Product Description
Bletchley Park was where one of the war’s most famous – and crucial – achievements was made: the cracking of Germany’s “Enigma” code in which its most important military communications were couched. This country house in the Buckinghamshire countryside was home to Britain’s most brilliant mathematical brains, like Alan Turing, and the scene of immense advances in technology – indeed, the birth of modern computing. The military codes deciphered there were instrumental in turning both the Battle of the Atlantic and the war in North Africa. But, though plenty has been written about the boffins, and the codebreaking, fictional and non-fiction – from Robert Harris and Ian McEwan to Andrew Hodges’ biography of Turing – what of the thousands of men and women who lived and worked there during the war? What was life like for them – an odd, secret territory between the civilian and the military? Sinclair McKay’s book is the first history for the general reader of life at Bletchley Park, and an amazing compendium of memories from people now in their eighties – of skating on the frozen lake in the grounds (a depressed Angus Wilson, the novelist, once threw himself in) – of a youthful Roy Jenkins, useless at codebreaking, of the high jinks at nearby accommodation hostels – and of the implacable secrecy that meant girlfriend and boyfriend working in adjacent huts knew nothing about each other’s work.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
122 of 123 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
There have been a plethora of books on Bletchley Park and the crucial part it played in the downfall of Nazi Germany. This, though, is the first to put a human face to the extraordinary ordinary people who toiled tirelessly to crack the intercepted enemy codes and help turn the Second World War in the Allies' favour. Through a series of interviews with those who worked at the intelligence centre in the nondescript Buckinghamshire town, Sinclair McKay has been able to breathe new life into a well-mined story. Bound by the Official Secrets Act, many had not spoken about their war-time roles before; indeed, so assiduously did they follow the letter of the Act, relatives went to their graves thinking their offspring had somehow shirked their patriotic duties during the conflict, rather than being unsung, anonymous heroes. A book that deserves to sit alongside more scholarly offerings on the shelf.
34 of 34 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Although this book does look at how codes were broken, the war changed and lives affected by what happened at Bletchley Park, this is essentially about the people who worked there. And, what a cast of characters to work with! Boffins, socialites, professors and tea girls. Everyone had a part to play and this is a very interesting book about a fascinating time. Buy and enjoy.
71 of 72 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book is rivetting. I know we've all been told quite a bit about Bletchley Park since the wraps were removed, but this book makes one realise how absolutely extraordinary a place it was; and how amazingly extraordinary were the girls and boys, men and women who worked there. It is wonderfully human in its descriptions of personalities and is better than any novel I have ever read set in this period and a similar background. It shows how beautifully English-amateurish and ad hoc was the setting up and gathering of suitable personnel; and how very well-chosen and suitable they all were ! Doubt it would be allowed to happen today ! And how much we owe them all can never ever be calculated. I'm so glad this has been written and published whilst so many of them are able to receive this salute to their loyalty and commitment. We owe them our un-dying gratitude....literally !
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Was this review helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Bletchley Facts
I'm around 70% through this on my Kindle, and sadly find it a little irritating.
The factual content can't be faulted - it's clear the author has researched the subject... Read more
The factual content can't be faulted - it's clear the author has researched the subject... Read more
Published 7 days ago by R. Benson
best buys
I borrowed Bletchley Park from the library, and enjoyed it so much, that I bought it for a cousin. He also enjoyed it very much. Read more
Published 15 days ago by margaret
The Secret Life of Bletchley Park
Having visited Bletchley Park some while ago I was keen to read this book. I was pleased that it was chosen as the book of the month for my reading group. Read more
Published 19 days ago by avidreader
A fascinating account
Well-written and highly readable. Having been brought up in post-war Cambridge, it was only 30-40 years later that we were to discover that various family friends and even... Read more
Published 24 days ago by Ed Crutchley
Bletchley Park; a popular history.
This is a useful review of the Bletchley Park operation in WW11. It is written in a slick journalistic style that may deter some readers. Read more
Published 29 days ago by J. Holmes
subject matter captivating, writing poor, author's "point of view"...
The whole code-breaking, history of computing, history of Bletchley Park needs to be remembered. I've followed the technical stuff for some time and was pleased to see something... Read more
Published 29 days ago by G. Gavigan
Utterly compulsive
A friend gave me this book to read, assuring me that I would enjoy it. I took it out of politeness thinking that I would be way out of my depth with it. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mrs. K. A. Wheatley
extremely dissapointing
A wonderful history of how people lived in lodgings during the war. This could have been set almost anywhere and gave no idea of what happened at Bletchley Park and how the codes... Read more
Published 2 months ago by norm
Disappointing
Like other readers, I saved this for a reading treat. What a disappointment. Other reviews have referred to inaccuracies which I wouldn't have spotted but now make me wonder why I... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Mad but not actually dangerous
Bletchley Park
Following a brilliant visit to Bletchley Park, I just had to read this book, and it was an excellent read. Read more
Published 2 months ago by H.Ead
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
- Books > History > Britain & Ireland > Ireland
- Books > History > Military History > Strategy, Tactics & Military Science
- Books > History > Military History > Weapons & Warfare > Conventional
- Books > History > World History > World War II 1939-1945 > Battles & Campaigns
- Books > History > World History > World War II 1939-1945 > Enigma Code
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
