THE CODE BREAKERS SPEAK: A book review of Michael Paterson’s Voices of the Code Breakers – Personal Accounts of the Secret Heroes of World War II.

While the story of the successful Allied efforts to break Axis codes during World War II has been told well a number of times, British historian Paterson’s approach offers the reader a novel look at the subject, by in drawing heavily on interviews, memoirs, diaries, and similar first-hand accounts by the men and women who helped bring about that success.

Although he tends to mostly cover British efforts, Paterson’s account ranges across the work of several countries. He often cuts back and forth from the stuffy huts at Bletchley Park to daring deeds at sea and on land, to show us how the tedious work of the code breakers affected and was affected by the harsh realities of combat.

This is another succinct and informative review by Dr. A.A. Nofi.