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Review: The Enigma Girls

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The Enigma Girls
By Candace Fleming
New York: Scholastic Focus, 2024. Informational. 371 pages.

If you have an interest in little known aspects of history or in World War II in particular, this book is for you. The Enigma Girls tells the story of 10 young women who worked at Station X at Bletchley Park in England helping to break ciphers during World War II. Each of the girls grew up in different circumstances, and thus, each worked at in a different part of Station X cracking codes. The reader learns about how Station X worked through the stories of each of the girls. Whether it was transcribing the Morse code messages that the Germans were sending to their armies or decoding, translating, or paraphrasing messages, each girl had a part to play. The stories of the girls are intermixed with plenty of photographs as well as special chapters about how to decode various types of ciphers. Learning about Station X through the eyes of the girls that worked there helps the reader gain a human perspective of the difficulties of living and working in the remote location. These girls, who for a long time were mostly lost to history, faced daunting struggles but remained steadfast in their important work and saved countless lives though their perseverance. This book is sure to be a favorite of any kid who has ever wanted to be a spy... and their parents too.

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