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briarfairchild's review against another edition
3.0
Really interesting stories but hard to keep track of which person was which.
lifeonmybookcase's review against another edition
4.0
Was a little hard to keep track of all the girls stories but it was very interesting. I enjoyed finding out about Bletchley Park, which I had no previous knowledge of. I really want to read more about Bletchley and the code-breaking.
hannahmayreads's review against another edition
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
A wonderful introductory book, the narrow focus (achieved by focusing on only 15 women, all who were still alive at the time of writing) gives this a distinctly personal edge. I wouldn't call it comprehensive though, and the focus is most definitely on the women as individuals rather than the work they did. That is not to be taken as criticism, but rather a note to inform the reader. If you want to know about Bletchley there are plenty of other options.
What makes this such a gem is that we are able to see a complete picture of what life was like for the women who worked at Bletchley beyond their various jobs and how spending such formative years (the youngest was 16 and the oldest just 24 when they started out) in a time when war collided with incredible social upheaval.
What this book perhaps lacks in factual depth it more than makes up for with real warmth and personality.
What makes this such a gem is that we are able to see a complete picture of what life was like for the women who worked at Bletchley beyond their various jobs and how spending such formative years (the youngest was 16 and the oldest just 24 when they started out) in a time when war collided with incredible social upheaval.
What this book perhaps lacks in factual depth it more than makes up for with real warmth and personality.
girlwithherheadinabook's review
3.0
For my full review: http://girlwithherheadinabook.co.uk/2015/11/review-bletchley-girls-tessa-dunlop.html
I am a slight Bletchley Park fan-girl, I confess this fact freely. In 2014, I visited the Museum twice and plan on visiting again soon. I read Sinclair McKay's The Secret History of Bletchley Park and The Secret Listeners but while both of those are very thorough sources of information about the overall running of Station X and the Y Service as a whole, McKay tends to steer pretty well clear of anything approaching human emotion. He tends to note in a rather stony tones that people were too busy for any of that kind of silliness, so it was with enthusiasm that I spotted both Bletchley Girls and The Debs of Bletchley Park hitting the shelves. I got my copy of Bletchley Girls the day the paperback came out but am only now getting round to the review. I realised as I was reading it that I had been hoping for something along the lines of Virginia Nicholson's Millions Like Us and in that respect I was disappointed, but what Bletchley Girls did offer was a lively and interesting account of the women behind one of the most remarkable aspects of the Second World War.
As an author, Dunlop is a very enthusiastic one and the first chapter details her efforts to convene enough veterans to write a book about. There is a real feel of 'getting the band back together', with Dunlop's excitement and passion for her subjects very clear. The sentences fizz with childish glee as she discovers facts to treasure about the lives of each of her 'girls'. One of them was only fourteen when she started work in the park. Another was Jewish. One of them was actually working-class. And so on. There is an endearing amateurish feel to this, with Dunlop's Aunt Sally being roped in to get her in touch with one of her harder-to-reach targets. Still, Dunlop's most intense eagerness is reserved for 'Lady Jean' of Arran, who initially refuses to have any involvement, a decision that appears to inspire a kind of puppy-doggish devotion in Dunlop.
I feel slightly snide saying any of this - but truly Dunlop's fervour for the project is both the book's downfall as well as its greatest asset. I began the book carried along by her gaiety - the way she describes setting about her research really helps the reader to feel involved. But as time went on, Bletchley Girls began to feel like more of a hagiography, that Dunlop had over-identified with her participants meaning that she was incapable to depicting all sides. She is having so much fun getting to know these fascinating old ladies that she can never bring herself to ask any truly challenging questions. And the way in which she explains just how aristocratic and high-born and noble Lady Jean is on virtually every page did wear a little thin.
The book's success comes in how it captures the testimony of the female veterans - Dunlop insists when confronted by how much has already been written on the subject that her work will be 'different' to any others in focusing on those who are still alive and trying to catch their voice. Yet still, as time went on it felt like something which might have worked better as a documentary, where the women could have spoken for themselves rather than through Dunlop's filter. Their stories are fascinating - we hear of girls going straight from school uniform to WAAF uniform and knowing instinctively to not breathe a word of what they were doing.
I had always rather fancied the idea of working in Bletchley - this is based on the fact that I am worryingly impractical and have very pool fine motor skills so flinch at the idea of a factory but I do like crosswords so code-breaking seems more like my thing. Dunlop points out rather breathlessly how dull a lot of the work was, with the redoubtable Lady Jean crumbling after several months of repetitive desk work and demanding something else to do. Yet several of the others truly thrived - the working-class Betty clearly adored her job and Dunlop (and the reader) glimpse her life-long sadness at having to give it up to get married. Oxford graduate Ann also thrived in the high-pressure intellectual environment. Pam - Rozanne - Gwen - each woman's experience was different, as indeed was the way they remembered it. Even those who spent much of their war together have different recollections, meaning that this has the feel of a highly personal, if subjective, account.
It is sweet too to read of the women's excitement at being recognised at last for their achievements; their children proudly list the various members of the Royal Family who they have met, the interviews and television programmes they have featured in. Too many of them had to endure very hard lives and it is nice to think of the Bletchley girls letting their hair down at long last. Dunlop's book brings a truly human touch to the Bletchley story and deserves recognition for having done so - it is a definite contrast to McKay's technical account or even the mainstream more Turing-centric accounts. However, I feel that at the hands of a more adept writer, this project's remit could have produced something outstanding, whereas what we have instead is a rather humdrum piece of what feels like authorised history.
I am a slight Bletchley Park fan-girl, I confess this fact freely. In 2014, I visited the Museum twice and plan on visiting again soon. I read Sinclair McKay's The Secret History of Bletchley Park and The Secret Listeners but while both of those are very thorough sources of information about the overall running of Station X and the Y Service as a whole, McKay tends to steer pretty well clear of anything approaching human emotion. He tends to note in a rather stony tones that people were too busy for any of that kind of silliness, so it was with enthusiasm that I spotted both Bletchley Girls and The Debs of Bletchley Park hitting the shelves. I got my copy of Bletchley Girls the day the paperback came out but am only now getting round to the review. I realised as I was reading it that I had been hoping for something along the lines of Virginia Nicholson's Millions Like Us and in that respect I was disappointed, but what Bletchley Girls did offer was a lively and interesting account of the women behind one of the most remarkable aspects of the Second World War.
As an author, Dunlop is a very enthusiastic one and the first chapter details her efforts to convene enough veterans to write a book about. There is a real feel of 'getting the band back together', with Dunlop's excitement and passion for her subjects very clear. The sentences fizz with childish glee as she discovers facts to treasure about the lives of each of her 'girls'. One of them was only fourteen when she started work in the park. Another was Jewish. One of them was actually working-class. And so on. There is an endearing amateurish feel to this, with Dunlop's Aunt Sally being roped in to get her in touch with one of her harder-to-reach targets. Still, Dunlop's most intense eagerness is reserved for 'Lady Jean' of Arran, who initially refuses to have any involvement, a decision that appears to inspire a kind of puppy-doggish devotion in Dunlop.
I feel slightly snide saying any of this - but truly Dunlop's fervour for the project is both the book's downfall as well as its greatest asset. I began the book carried along by her gaiety - the way she describes setting about her research really helps the reader to feel involved. But as time went on, Bletchley Girls began to feel like more of a hagiography, that Dunlop had over-identified with her participants meaning that she was incapable to depicting all sides. She is having so much fun getting to know these fascinating old ladies that she can never bring herself to ask any truly challenging questions. And the way in which she explains just how aristocratic and high-born and noble Lady Jean is on virtually every page did wear a little thin.
The book's success comes in how it captures the testimony of the female veterans - Dunlop insists when confronted by how much has already been written on the subject that her work will be 'different' to any others in focusing on those who are still alive and trying to catch their voice. Yet still, as time went on it felt like something which might have worked better as a documentary, where the women could have spoken for themselves rather than through Dunlop's filter. Their stories are fascinating - we hear of girls going straight from school uniform to WAAF uniform and knowing instinctively to not breathe a word of what they were doing.
I had always rather fancied the idea of working in Bletchley - this is based on the fact that I am worryingly impractical and have very pool fine motor skills so flinch at the idea of a factory but I do like crosswords so code-breaking seems more like my thing. Dunlop points out rather breathlessly how dull a lot of the work was, with the redoubtable Lady Jean crumbling after several months of repetitive desk work and demanding something else to do. Yet several of the others truly thrived - the working-class Betty clearly adored her job and Dunlop (and the reader) glimpse her life-long sadness at having to give it up to get married. Oxford graduate Ann also thrived in the high-pressure intellectual environment. Pam - Rozanne - Gwen - each woman's experience was different, as indeed was the way they remembered it. Even those who spent much of their war together have different recollections, meaning that this has the feel of a highly personal, if subjective, account.
It is sweet too to read of the women's excitement at being recognised at last for their achievements; their children proudly list the various members of the Royal Family who they have met, the interviews and television programmes they have featured in. Too many of them had to endure very hard lives and it is nice to think of the Bletchley girls letting their hair down at long last. Dunlop's book brings a truly human touch to the Bletchley story and deserves recognition for having done so - it is a definite contrast to McKay's technical account or even the mainstream more Turing-centric accounts. However, I feel that at the hands of a more adept writer, this project's remit could have produced something outstanding, whereas what we have instead is a rather humdrum piece of what feels like authorised history.
hugh's review
Interesting to hear about the different motivations the women at BP had, and how little they knew about the wider mission. Also how big a deal the different uniforms were to them!
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