Code Beaker, Spy Hunter: How Elizabeth Friedman Changed the Course of Two World Wars

 

Today's nonfiction post is on Code Beaker, Spy Hunter: How Elizabeth Friedman Changed the Course of Two World Wars by Laurie Wellmark and illustrated by Brooke Smart. It is 48 pages long and is published by Abrams Books for Young Readers. There is no sex, no foul language and no violence in this book. The intended reader is someone who is interested in women's history. There Be Spoilers Ahead.

From the dust jacket- Elizabeth Friedman dedicated her life to cracking and deciphering secret messages. Until recently, her role in taking down Nazis and outsmarting criminals had been hidden away with her classified files, stamped TOP SECRET ULTRA. With just paper pencil, and her sharp wit, Elizabeth thwarted smugglers, uncovered spy rings and evn cracked the unbreakable Enigma codes. Author Laurie Wellmark and illustrator Brooke Smart reveal Elizabeth's accomplishments and bring her incredible true story to light. 

Review- A fun and interesting nonfiction read for children about an interesting and important woman. Elizabeth Friedman helped cracked spy and military codes for the United States during both World Wars and until 2015 all her work was classified. Now she story can and should be told. Wellmark and Smart bring her story to life in this colorful book for all ages. They tell her story from beginning to the end of her life but we spend the most time with her during her years in the wars. There are codes that you can solve as you go through the book and you learn how to make a basic code yourself. This was a fun read and easy read. Elizabeth Friedman was a brilliant woman, whose work saved lives, and deserved to be remembered. 

I give this book a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I borrowed this book from my local library.