Overall, what did you think of Code Girls? (no spoilers in this thread please)

Overall, what did you think of Code Girls? (no spoilers in this thread please)

It was very informative and well researched. The author is a supurb writer. I felt it bogged down often—but I'm not an especially technical-interest person. I know others will feel much more at ease while reading this book.

Three cheers for the girls! Like Suzanne, I am not an especially technical-interest person, but this book won me over.......and it's about time that these ladies were recognized for their part in ending the war!!!!!!!

Really enjoyed it. I graduated from Wellesley, so the discussion of the colleges that produced the Code Girls interested me. So did the girls’ training and the history of cryptology, since I worked in that field. Right up my alley!

I was fascinated with most of the book although I seemed to get lost frequently as the author described in great detail the codes. The book was thoroughly researched and it was particularly interesting to read about the women following the war.

I was overcome with admiration and awe at their sheer numbers. They went the extra mile for the country when it was most needed and made amazing contributions to shortening WWII.

Overall, reading the book was a challenge. There was more incidental information given than necessary and not as much about the day-to-day lives of the women, which is what was expected. Although it is called Code Girls, there was as much information given about the men at that time which took away from the story I was looking for. To be fair, the book was well researched...it just wasn't the book I was expecting. Therefore, I was truly disappointed.

I loved this book. It was history that I wasn't aware of. I have great admiration for these women.

Very interesting topic, dry and technical for the most part. I would have enjoyed more personal stories from the women themselves... I like a story that is more readable and personal than this one. I do think the author did the research, it was just very difficult for me to stay interested in the technicalities.

I enjoyed it very much. This a part of our history we are just learning about. I was a little girl during the war and had I known about these women, I can see myself day dreaming about being like them. The author did a lot of research while writing this book. Some parts got a little long. I enjoyed the stories about each of these women. It took a lot of courage to take on something that they knew nothing about.

This was well documented history of these brave women. Brave because they came from some of the most elite educational institutions and entered into an unknown world at a time when women were not encouraged to take risks. It was interesting how the author researched each of the women, their backgrounds, their challenges as cryptogrophers, and the different outcomes each experienced. More importantly was the significance of their contributions.

Code Girls is very well researched and documented and provides a new look at women’s role in WW II. that said, the details of code work were often hard for me to follow. I listened to the ebook and would not recommend that medium. I’m eager to see the young people’s version just released.

I agree with those who said the book got a little dense when discussing code-breaking techniques, but other than those sections I really liked it. I thought the author did an excellent job researching the book, and given the ages of the women she was interviewing and the lack of comprehensive material available, she did a great job profiling several of them.

I totally got into this book! I had read "The Woman Who Smashed Codes" by Jason Fagone (Elizabeth Friedman"s story) and this was a great follow-up. The occasional mentions of Elizebeth and William Friedman added to my enjoyment. Mundy does not pussy foot around. She tells the code breakers story in specific detail. It improved my over-all understanding of World War II and explained specific battles in a new light.

I was very impressed with the book and purchased it on Audible so that I could enjoy it back and forth to work. I did struggle with the technical aspect of the book but appreciated learning about a group of women that I was not familiar with and their impact on winning World War II. I have gone to both the Nimitz Museum in Fredricksburg, TX and the World War II Museum in New Orleans, LA and I did not walk away knowing that these women contributed to both the success of the Asia Pacific War and the European War. I also liked that she carried the story to present times so we learned what happened to these "heroes" after the war. Ms. Mundy has provided a great resource about this time in history.

Overall I loved the book. The story of these women’s contribution to the war effort was so interesting. I’ve always been fascinated by WW2 and the importance of code breaking in particular although prior to this I knew only of the code breakers at Bletchley Park in England. I’m a Wellesley College alum and was proud to read of the important work done by young graduates from many women’s colleges. Although I respect and honor the exhaustive research done by the author, I agree with the comments of others that reading about the details of code breaking was pretty tedious for a non-science person. It was the personal stories that captured my interest and kept me reading. I found the stories of the women after the war to be very powerful. These were women who contributed in a major way to the Allies victory in the war. They were sworn to secrecy and could never discuss and be recognized for the important work they did. Thank you to the author for bringing this story to our attention.

Outstanding!! It is always good to find women in history who stepped forward and did what needed to be done. I found it interesting and inspiring.

I enjoyed this book though it makes me wonder what other groups who have made contributions to our world have been completely overlooked because they were not the dominant group at the time. It may motivate me to read more about underrepresented populations. The codes and ways of breaking them were fascinating. I don't think I'd have been creative enough to figure out and break the codes. I appreciated the variety of backgrounds of the women and the challenges they faced - even the silly ones related to fashion in the military.

I am still in process of reading due to life, but so far I am LOVING this book! Non fiction is typically not my thing but the women's stories have been so interesting so far. Looking forward to the remainder of the book.

While at times there were too many names and places mentioned, the author had a wonderful way of making history come alive...even though I have read much about Pearl Harbor her description of the event was powerful.

This book is highly informative--I had no idea about the scope of the code-breaking field. I'm enthralled by the detailed work required, and the extraordinary patience needed by those endeavoring to decipher codes.

I would have loved to have been a participant.

The Code Girls is a fascinating true story of the unsung code-breaking heroines whose expert use of word weaponry helped the US win World War II. How young women from all over the country were recruited by the Army and Navy for the top-secret task of breaking and translating German and Japanese encrypted military messages is expertly woven by the author into personal stories of the women’s war loves and lives. The book is well researched and a must-read for those interested in U.S. World War II history. As others have pointed out, there is a fair amount of technical detail but I found it fascinating and an effective counterpoint to the women’s personal lives.

Kudos to Liza Mundy for her vividly descriptive writing of the women who did such an exemplary job as code-breakers, helping to fight for our country, and her fascinating, intriguing historical research. This is an intense, intriguing, captivating and informative novel.I would highly recommend "Code Girls" for those readers that who enjoy World War Two reading.

Yes, I really enjoyed this book and learned so much. I thought I knew a lot about the cryptoanalysts during WWII, but was surprised at how many were women and how their contribution and their hard work was so critical to the success of the war effort. It was packed with a lot of information which made it a slower read, but it was so worth it. Thanks to Liza Mundy for all her efforts in putting this book together. I would highly recommend this book to every WWII buff.

As a number of people have posted, I agree the book is well researched. My conclusion at the end of the book was the researched history was somewhat matter of fact. The author generated creative "interest" in the book by including significant technical detail about code-breaking. While I enjoyed and was impressed by the capability of these women, I was bored by the depth of the technical detail used to lengthen the discussion. I would give the book 3 stars overall.

Normally, I am not the biggest fan of non-fiction (it reads too much like a school “assignment” for me rather than a pleasurable read), but I really enjoyed this!! I still have a little bit to go, but I’m amazed that this part of our WWII history is not more well known. I’m in awe of these women and how instrumental they were in the war, even though it is obvious that everything was stacked against the allies’ winning the war.

I really enjoyed this book and found it very informative. There were some areas where I felt the story could have been told without being so wordy but overall a very enjoyable book.

I had a hard time reading through all the detailed descriptions although I enjoy history and the subject matter.

I really enjoyed this book. Non-fiction typically isn't my go-to but this has made me want to expand more into this genre