Liza Mundy

Wow, wow, wow!!!
This book was an incredible story, told lovingly by Liza Mundy. I loved the way Ms. Mundy wrote about each of the code girls, including their back story, and the toll working a secret operation took on their lives. I also loved learning about the way the girls were recruited, how they lived and worked together, and especially, how their contributions helped the Allied war effort.
This book could have been very dry, but Ms. Mundy anecdotes about each of these women brought the show more story to life. I was familiar with Alan Turing and his work, but I was not familiar with the work done by these women during and after WWII.
I also really enjoyed learning some local history. Living in Baltimore, I am familiar with Goucher College, but not its participation in the war effort. I also wasn't aware of its earlier location. I also enjoyed hearing about Arlington Hall, and the other locations around the DC metro area.
I especially was thrilled to read about these smart women. Women who have brains and used them to their best capacity. However, I was saddened to read about the sexism and the inequity of pay, as well as the stigma of pregnancy. I was inspired to read how the ambition of these women to do more with their lives, use their education, and to better themselves and their family was woven in their character.
These women are heroes. I thank Liza Mundy for bringing their stories to life.
FANTASTIC!!
#CodeGirls #LizaMundy show less

Liza Mundy tells the story of the American women who worked as code-breakers during WWII, selected for their education and intelligence to serve their country and whose contributions were hidden from the public for many years.

I feel like most people at this point have heard of Bletchley Park and the many British women who worked in that top-secret facility, but I had no idea that there were American women doing the same thing during WWII and I very much enjoyed this overview of their lives show more and work. Mundy does a very good job interweaving the various stories and branches (several branches of the military started recruiting women to do this work around the same time and of course they didn't cooperate) into a cohesive, compelling narrative. 4 stars. show less

This was an interesting look at the process by which women were recruited, trained and sent to work in code-breaking facilities for the American military during World War Two. I’ve been enjoying some of these untold slices of history, and this was another really cool one, following young girls, mostly right out of college with few prospects other than teaching school (and making up for there being teacher shortages by covering classes for multiple missing teachers in oversized classrooms). show more

The book was very technical, but also had interesting personal stories scattered throughout. I found the stories illustrating the blatant sexism of the time particularly interesting, as well as the resentments nursed between military men, civilian men working for the military as codebreakers, civilian women working for the military… there was a lot of tension! Anyway, a fascinating read.

Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader. show less

This is a completely riveting book about a part of WWII history that, for a long time, went undiscussed. Liza Mundy does a fantastic job in conveying the skill and the integrity in the women who held these extremely important jobs. She also does a great job in showing us the lives of these women before, during, and after the war, and how policies of the time robbed them of the recognition they deserved--and often, kept them from pursuing careers using the skills they developed in the war. show more

Liza Mundy also managed to do something really impressive, in that she had me on the edge of my seat, absolutely riveted, at events that I know extremely well. I am a WWII historian, so the "how this happened" stuff is old hat to me. Yet by shedding light on the behind-the-scenes efforts that went on to break ciphers and codes that were integral to the war, she has added an entirely new perspective on the war effort during events like D-Day, the Battle of the Bulge, and the dropping of atomic bombs on Japan. It's thoroughly fascinating material. show less