A Game of Birds and Wolves

A stunning book about an unknown part of the largely forgotten Battle of the Atlantic, which is a must read. * Niall Kilgour, chairman of the Submariners Association * This is the riveting true story of war, amazing women, and one of the most important games in history. * Major Tom Mouat MBE, Simulation and Modelling Technology School, Defence Academy of the United Kingdom * Simon Parkin describes brilliantly the key role of WATU in the Battle of the Atlantic. I was proud to read of my mother's role as a Wren with influence far beyond her age and experience, and of my father's application of WATU-designed tactics in the key anti-U boat battle of the Atlantic. * Vice Admiral Mike Gretton, son of Judy Du Vivier and Sir Peter Gretton * A hugely enjoyable and exciting book . . . A compelling and important new story, lucidly and humanely told. * Roland Phillipps, author of A SPY NAMED ORPHAN * Gripping . . . a great read. * Sorted Magazine * Enthralling . . . a pacey read with some wonderfully vivid set pieces * Literary Review * This is a thrilling story, compellingly told * History Revealed * With novelistic flair, Parkin transforms material gathered from research, interviews, and unpublished accounts into a highly readable book that celebrates the ingenuity of a British naval 'reject' and the accomplishments of the formerly faceless women never officially rewarded for their contribution to the Allied defeat of Germany. A lively, sharp WWII history. * Kirkus Reviews * History writing at its best * Booklist (starred review) * A triumph * Daily Mirror * Engaging and skilful . . . [Parkin] writes with real flair and the human side of this story is brought out with fine vignettes and character sketches . . . If the place of women in Britain's naval war has been played down, Parkin's vivid story recovers it handsomely . . . Inside his narrative is a desire to show how ordinary people did extraordinary things in wartime . . . this is a good read on a corner of the war and the men and women who peopled it - one very much worthy of our attention. -- Richard Overy * Guardian * In a riveting, intricately researched book, Simon Parkin tells the previously unknown story behind the Allied victory in the Atlantic during World War II. It's an underdog's tale - not only of British supply fleets trying to outrun German U-boats, but also of the women game designers who made that victory possible. * Ian Bogost, Ivan Allen College Distinguished Chair in Media Studies at the Georgia Institute of Technology; Contributing writer at The Atlantic, and author of PLAY ANYTHING * Sheds compelling new light on the ferocious struggle being played out in the mid-Atlantic ... [A Game of Birds and Wolves] has all the elements of a film * Sunday Times * [A] splendid new history of the war in the Atlantic . . . Simon Parkin's book rips along at full sail and is full of personality and personalities. Above all, it brings a barely known aspect of the sea war out into the light. Which is a triumph in itself. -- John Lewis Stempel * Sunday Express *