I loved this book! The Secret Lives of Codebreakers: The Men and Women Who Cracked the Enigma Code at Bletchley Park by Sinclair McKay is full of details about the daily lives of the British men and women who worked hard at code breaking but could tell no one. Ever.
Like spies in wartime, these regular people were recruited for special skills they had, like mathematics or language or puzzle and problem solving. They couldn't tell their families or friends what they were doing and mostly were told to say they worked for the government as secretaries or clerks of some kind.
They helped win World War II by cracking codes that helped the Allies learn where the enemy would be in advance, for example. After the war, these same people couldn't include any of their experience or skills obtained at Bletchley Park on their resumes or job applications so many went back to mundane jobs or changed fields entirely.
If you know a history buff, The Secret Lives of Codebreakers would be a fabulous Christmas present!
I also watched The Bletchley Circle about four women who cracked Nazi codes during World War II and used these skills to track a killer years later. Fascinating stuff!
Book Read: The Secret Lives of Codebreakers: The Men and Women Who Cracked the Enigma Code at Bletchley Park
Author: Sinclair McKay
I got up this morning, put on a pot of coffee, and finished reading Donna Tartt's amazing novel The Goldfinch. This is one of those epic books that you don't want to end. I appreciated the nice wrap up at the end so I wouldn't feel too discombobulated after finishing it. I'm just sad that's all there is.
I love Anita Shreve's novels. Stella Bain is her latest and I was not disappointed. 
I finished reading this collection of essays by Ann Patchett yesterday. I really enjoyed each one. The variety kept things interesting and I love her writing.
I read the third installment in the Bridget Jones books and loved this one! I read the first book, Bridget Jones's Diary. Then I watched the movie and the second one, The Edge of Reason, but I didn't read that one.
The Woman Upstairs is the first book by Claire Messud that I've read, and I was pleasantly surprised. 
The First Affair by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus (The Nanny Diaries) was surprisingly good! The young intern who finagles an internship through a friend's connections is assigned to the White House and ends up in an affair with the big guy. Yes, the President. 
