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War of Shadows

Codebreakers, Spies, and the Secret Struggle to Drive the Nazis from the Middle East
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( 267 ratings, 42 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
In War of Shadows by Gershom Gorenberg, the narrative unfolds during World War II, intricately detailing the clandestine operations and espionage that helped shape the iconic battles of the North African campaign. The book explores the pivotal moments and strategic manoeuvres from both the Axis and Allied sides, illuminating the shadowy underbelly of wartime intelligence that ultimately influenced the course of history.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you’re fascinated by untold stories of World War II and how intelligence and espionage played a crucial role. It offers an in-depth analysis of military tactics and explores the secretive battles that shaped the outcome of the war, making it perfect for history enthusiasts intrigued by the intricacies of strategy and deception.

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Rommel's army is a day from Cairo, a week from Tel Aviv. The SS is ready for action. Espionage brought the Nazis this far. Espionage can stop them - if Washington wakes up to the danger.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

In this World War II military history, Rommel's army is a day from Cairo, a week from Tel Aviv, and the SS is ready for action. Espionage brought the Nazis this far, but espionage can stop them if Washington wakes up to the danger.

As World War II raged in North Africa, General Erwin Rommel was guided by an uncanny sense of his enemies' plans and weaknesses. In the summer of 1942, he led his Axis army swiftly and terrifyingly toward Alexandria, with the goal of overrunning the entire Middle East. Each step was informed by detailed updates on British positions. The Nazis, somehow, had a source for the Allies' greatest secrets.

Yet the Axis powers were not the only ones with intelligence. Brilliant Allied cryptographers worked relentlessly at Bletchley Park, breaking down the extraordinarily complex Nazi code Enigma. From decoded German messages, they discovered that the enemy had a wealth of inside information. On the brink of disaster, a fevered and high-stakes search for the source began.

War of Shadows is the cinematic story of the race for information in the North African theatre of World War II, set against intrigues that spanned the Middle East. Years in the making, this book is a feat of historical research and storytelling, and a rethinking of the popular narrative of the war. It portrays the conflict not as an inevitable clash of heroes and villains but a spiralling series of failures, accidents, and desperate triumphs that decided the fate of the Middle East and quite possibly the outcome of the war.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Gershom Gorenberg's War of Shadows is praised for its richly detailed and deeply researched narrative, offering a vivid and fascinating account of World War II's intelligence operations in the Middle East and North Africa. Reviewers highlight its engaging, thriller-like style and its exploration of the pivotal espionage that influenced the region's political future. Described as groundbreaking and meticulously crafted, it enlightens readers about a less-known theatre of WWII, with captivating storytelling akin to a spy thriller.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781541702677

Publisher: PublicAffairs,U.S.

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 27 October 2022

Country: United States

Imprint: PublicAffairs,U.S.

Illustration: 1 map

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 36.0mm

Width: 138.0mm

Height: 208.0mm

Weight: 440g

Pages: 496

About the Author

Gershom Gorenberg is a historian and journalist who has been covering Middle Eastern affairs for more than thirty-five years. His latest book, War of Shadows, began with a conversation in Jerusalem that set off years of searching through archives for long-secret documents, though attics for lost papers, through streets in Cairo, Rome, London endless days and nights of seeing facts unravel and new ones take shape in place of them, of following one lead to another to find someone who remembered the mysterious woman at Bletchley Park who discovered Rommel's source in British headquarters in Cairo an obsessive hunt that led to the real story of how the Nazis came within an inch of conquering the Middle East.Gorenberg was previously the author of three critically acclaimed books The Unmaking of Israel, The Accidental Empire, and The End of Days and coauthor of Shalom, Friend: The Life and Legacy of Yitzhak Rabin, winner of the National Jewish Book Award.Gershom is a columnist for the Washington Post and a senior correspondent for the American Prospect. He has written for the Atlantic Monthly, the New York Times Magazine, the New York Review of Books, the New Republic, and in Hebrew for Haaretz. He will return to the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism in 2021 to teach the workshop he created on writing history. He lives in Jerusalem with his wife, journalist Myra Noveck. They have three children Yehonatan, Yasmin and Shir-Raz.

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