Can flashing lights send out a secret message? Did a famous spy use sketches of butterflies to hide messages? Can a digital photo hide a secret code? For centuries, spies have used many different ways to pass secret information. Codes and ciphers keep information safe from the enemy. Author Susan K. Mitchell uncovers the secrets to the amazing world of spy codes and ciphers.
March 1, 2012
Gr 4-6-Mitchell has done the secret world of espionage justice with these titles. Filled with illustrations, facts, and true tales, the books cover everything students would want to know about a spy's life. Lies offers a primer on a few of the most famous spies in history. Codes discusses the brilliant ways in which people have disguised messages. Gizmos looks at spy rings, cameras, the Kiss of Death, and cell-phone tracking. Traitors begins with Benedict Arnold and Mata Hari and comes to the present day with Robert Hanssen. Each book has a page about a spy career associated with its topic and includes educational requirements, salary ranges, and a section of resources for more information. Sidebars with more information and extra stories and photos are peppered throughout the volumes. Easy-to-read, informative titles.-Lia Carruthers, Roxbury Public Library, Succasunna, NJ
Copyright 2012 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
January 1, 2012
Archival photographs, sidebars, and multiple fact-filled features (sidebars, text boxes, etc.) combine with accessible texts to present a thorough (albeit busy) introduction to the history and current enterprise of spies and spying. From the famous and the little-known to the resources, gadgets, and skills used to betray or assist governments, these titles provide abundant information for young intelligence gatherers. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind.
(Copyright 2012 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)