The Secret History of World War II
Spies, Code Breakers, & Covert Operations
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The Secret History of World War II
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Narrated by:
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Andrew Reilly
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Written by:
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Neil Kagan
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Stephen G. Hyslop
About this listen
From spy missions to code breaking, this account of the covert operations of World War II takes listeners behind the battle lines and deep into the undercover war effort that changed the course of history.
From the authors who created Eyewitness to World War II and numerous other best-selling reference books, this is the shocking story behind the covert activity that shaped the outcome of one of the world's greatest conflicts - and the destiny of millions of people. National Geographic's landmark book illuminates World War II as never before by taking you inside the secret lives of spies and spymasters; secret agents and secret armies; Enigma machines and code breakers; psychological warfare and black propaganda; secret weapons and secret battle strategies. Seven narrative chapters reveal the truth behind the lies and deception that shaped the "secret war". Renowned historian and top-selling author Stephen Hyslop and Neil Kagan reveal this little-known side of the war in captivating detail, weaving in extraordinary eyewitness accounts and information only recently declassified.
©2016 Neil Kagan and Stephen G. Hyslop (P)2016 Blackstone Audio, Inc.What listeners say about The Secret History of World War II
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Roberta W
- 2021-11-19
Interesting stories not found elsewhere
I admit I almost bailed after the first five minutes as the narration was a bit too monotone for me, but I kept listening because the content was of such interest. After awhile I stopped noticing the narration, it seemed fine. Great book if you are interested in WWII deception techniques.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- HuengLo
- 2022-02-16
Quite well done.
not a bad compilation of random facts. A hard thing to do, condense so much time into so little. bit of a teaser.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Langer MD
- 2022-10-12
Anecdotes
Neil Kagan and Stephen G. Hyslop do a very nice job collecting and compiling examples of covert action during WWII (spying, double-agent misdirection, stealing technical plans, scheming among POWs to escape, etc). They also emphasize the importance of Signals Intelligence victories like America cracking the Japanese Red/Purple ciphers (Operation 'Magic') and Alan Turing's breaking of Germany's Enigma system (with the 'Ultra' program team). Each example of clandestine warfare in the book is explained clearly and presented with praiseworthy vocabulary and prose. The book is definitely readable.
Unfortunately, some of the technical detail is hard to visualize in the audiobook format and the authors do a poor job tying the examples together into a cohesive thesis. This version of the book consequently feels scattershot and frustratingly aimless (given a choice between this and a paper or eBook iteration.. take the text copy).
The "average" narration from Andrew Reilly contributes to the "passable" status of the recording. Blackstone Audio Inc did well to enlist Reilly - his diction, timbre, cadence, and tone are praiseworthy - but nothing special.. any professional reader could do a similar job (and sound engineers are frankly lazy while splicing re-recorded segments into the audiobook. Poorly-matched audio often makes the book sound thrown together).
I am grateful to Audible for making this 6 out of 10 star recording available as a 'Plus' selection - for "free" it's definitely worth the time investment for anyone interested in some of the underemphasized initiatives of Allied, Axis, and Resistance Forces during the Second World War. Despite it's undeniable edifying value, however, 'The Secret History of World War II' is unlikely to be worth a Credit.
[ATTN PRODUCERS: An appended PDF with figures (showing how the Enigma Device worked for encryption, for example) would improve this product considerably]
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Marc-Andre Filion
- 2023-02-08
Pretty good!
Excellent entertainment if you haven’t already known about the clandestine part of ww2… otherwise some new info and it is really well articulated.
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