National Bestseller
NPR Best Book of the Year
“Not all superheroes wear capes, and Elizebeth Smith Friedman should be the subject of a future Wonder Woman movie.” —The New York Times
Joining the ranks of Hidden Figures and In the Garden of Beasts, the incredible true story of the greatest codebreaking duo that ever lived, an American woman and her husband who invented the modern science of … codebreaking duo that ever lived, an American woman and her husband who invented the modern science of cryptology together and used it to confront the evils of their time, solving puzzles that unmasked Nazi spies and helped win World War II.
In 1916, at the height of World War I, brilliant Shakespeare expert Elizebeth Smith went to work for an eccentric tycoon on his estate outside Chicago. The tycoon had close ties to the U.S. government, and he soon asked Elizebeth to apply her language skills to an exciting new venture: code-breaking. There she met the man who would become her husband, groundbreaking cryptologist William Friedman. Though she and Friedman are in many ways the “Adam and Eve” of the NSA, Elizebeth’s story, incredibly, has never been told.
In The Woman Who Smashed Codes, Jason Fagone chronicles the life of this extraordinary woman, who played an integral role in our nation’s history for forty years. After World War I, Smith used her talents to catch gangsters and smugglers during Prohibition, then accepted a covert mission to discover and expose Nazi spy rings that were spreading like wildfire across South America, advancing ever closer to the United States. As World War II raged, Elizebeth fought a highly classified battle of wits against Hitler’s Reich, cracking multiple versions of the Enigma machine used by German spies. Meanwhile, inside an Army vault in Washington, William worked furiously to break Purple, the Japanese version of Enigma—and eventually succeeded, at a terrible cost to his personal life.
Fagone unveils America’s code-breaking history through the prism of Smith’s life, bringing into focus the unforgettable events and colorful personalities that would help shape modern intelligence. Blending the lively pace and compelling detail that are the hallmarks of Erik Larson’s bestsellers with the atmosphere and intensity of The Imitation Game, The Woman Who Smashed Codes is page-turning popular history at its finest.
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Learned a lot about code breaking in World War II.
To me, this book is a well written history of our country’s own attempts to break secret codes, by clandestine governments. However, when one is finished reading this book, one must ask, what else is being done, in the spirit of what was accomplished, by this lady and her husband, during World War II. It is an “eye opening review,of what is going on, from our government’s perspective, to confront those who are trying to deal negatively, with the USA.
The things we average Americans don’t or didn’t know about the behind-the-scenes stuff that goes on either to keep us safe in America or the stupidity that could have caused us to crash and burn. Good reading and informative. Language in it was very decent, only a couple of curse words in all those pages.
Fascinating story about an under-appreciated American hero. Would make a great movie.
Intriguing part of history.
Loved the true story and how codes are written. Would have loved to meet this woman.
This was the most interesting book I have read in a long time.
I loved this book! The women portrayed in this book were unbelievably gifted in what they did. For a woman who is “mathematically challenged” it was incredible how these women solved these codes!
Excellent story that needed to be told. Well written.
Amazing true life story of one of the most amazing, and unknown, women of the 20th century.
The author has taken on a noble task: to shine a light on the contributions of the wife,whose contributions have historically be overshadowed by the accomplishments of her husband. But my interest waned as the author seemed compelled to share every detail he uncovered and the pace of the story lagged greatly. What started out as a biography seemed to bog down into a documentary.
It’s a bit of very important but generally overlooked history of WWII.
A well written book about a brilliant woman who was of her time and also ahead of her time. I am so glad the information was released so that her story could be told.
A most illuminating book, which reveals how this brilliant couple of cryptologists were largely responsible for making enabling a flow of intelligence critical ito winning WWII. It also illustrates that individual in government are able to take credit for others contributions by using “national security” as a cover for their abuse of power. It is quite remarkable that the Friedmans’ unique contribution to the war effort was so poorly compensated and heralded! The story is remarkable and very well documented. A fascinating insight into the period it covers.
A wonderful story, weighed down by the somewhat clunky writing. It would have been riveting with more adept story-telling. Still well-worth reading.
Wonderful book. Well written. Amusing. Informative.
Great information about our U.S. cryptographic history. Some wonderful background I’d never have imagined.
An amazing story about a very intelligent and clever woman and her husband. I didn’t know that people in US intelligence also cracked the German Enigma machine. The focus has been on the Brits. Very interesting and worthwhile read!
J Edgar Hoover and the FBI took credit for work she and her Coast Guard intelligence unit provided. She cracked code like no one else!
Fascinating biography of the first female cryptologist in the U.S.
Different from any book I have read! Enjoy!