Customer Reviews

Zigzag: The Incredible Wartime Exploits of Double Agent Eddie Chapman

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During World War II, Eddie Chapman bore the codename "Zigzag", given to him by his British masters at MI5. Such names were supposed to be close to meaningless; the point was to keep Chapman and his work secret. But some spymaster allowed a shade of meaning into Chapman's designator; he had zigged through the British criminal underworld, zagged through the ranks of German espionage, and MI5 had trouble understanding where he was coming from or where he would show up next. "Without a doubt he was the most remarkable spy of the Second World War," writes Nicholas Booth in _Zigzag: The Incredible Wartime Exploits of Double Agent Eddie Chapman_ (Arcade Publishing). Chapman has had his biographies before, and even a couple of autobiographies which are not really to be trusted because, well, he was Eddie Chapman, and also because of censorship restrictions, still in place when Chapman brought out his "real" story in 1966. Now the official secrecy is lifted and archives opened, and with the help of Chapman's longsuffering but devoted widow, Booth has researched Chapman's story as much as it probably will ever be. It's one of those stories that if it were brought out as a novel, it would be dismissed as lacking any grounds for credibility. Chapman was a clever, devious fellow, and MI5 harnessed the deviousness without ever rewarding him or acknowledging how much the nation was in Chapman's debt.

Chapman was born in 1914 and drifted to London in the mid-1930s, where, in his own words, he "met and mixed with all types of tricky people, racecourse crooks, touts, thieves, prostitutes and the flotsam of the nightlife of a great city." He was a small-time crook and went on to a specialty of blowing up safes. He was languishing in prison on the island of Jersey when the Germans took it over in 1940. The Germans recruited him as an agent and he was sent to training in France courtesy of the Abwehr, the intelligence branch of the German armed forces. In December 1942, Chapman was parachuted to Britain with a radio set, and he contacted the British Secret Service, who helped him pretend to blow up an aircraft factory. It was enough to impress his German controllers when he radioed them of his results, and when he returned to Germany, they were overjoyed to have him back. They presented him with the Iron Cross medal (Booth says it may have been a less prestigious medal than the Iron Cross, but still, he was the only Briton to win one). In 1944 when the German V-weapons were being developed, Chapman was parachuted again into Britain (the only double agent to make the crossing twice), and was there for the rest of the war. He transmitted reports about the landing points of the V-1 buzzbombs, reports that falsely indicated the bombs were overreaching their targets. Thereafter, bombs sent to destroy London began falling short in the fields of Kent.

The money and medal from Germany would be more recognition than Chapman would get from Britain. MI5 did arrange to wipe his previous convictions clean, and though after the war Chapman was involved in some dodgy enterprises and had to go to court, he was never again in prison. He and his wife, the woman he was visiting Jersey with at the time of his arrest there, stayed married until his death in 1997. Booth's tender interviews with her show that she remains smitten with him though he had little notion of fidelity. Chapman, MI5 finally acknowledged, was devoted to himself, to adventure, and to his country, in that order, and it was handy that MI5 could harness the first two to the use of the third. Here is a complex picture of a strange man, a fellow who ingratiated himself to others easily, was helpful and polite, and had a sociopathic interest in getting his own way and didn't mind doing it dishonestly. His wife remembers his motto was, "Never resist temptation." Not at all an attractive character as revealed in this entertaining biography, but entered into the war, with his sociopathy at the call of his country, and despite himself, he became some sort of a hero.

ZigZag is the true story of Eddie Chapman, a double agent for the British in World War II. His early life as a career criminal, was interrupted when he was captured on the Isle of Jersey, by the invading Germans. After some time in jail, he convinced the German's he would spy on England for them. He was trained in espionage and dropped by parachute into England , where his first act was to turn himself in and offer to work for the British as a double agent against the Germans. His life is a series of twists and turns, always searching for the next adventure, always crossing the line from petty criminal to conman, from spy to counterspy. A well written and thoroughly researched book. Sometimes it is hard for us or Eddie to tell which road he has chosen to travel.

Great book. Gripping. The reader gets a good understanding of war life for civilians, law enforcement, and spies in England, France, and Germany during World War II. I could not put this book down.

Perhaps my one-sentence summary is a tad harsh. But this book could really use a good editor. The general style is fine - nothing wrong with colloquial turns-of-phrase dominating such books, to my mind. And it does, in places, flow well and the overall style does at times complement the story itself.

But Booth's prose is peppered with errors and slips. His sentences often read as if they have been written quickly and only reviewed in a cursory manner. Booth often falls into the trap of replacing colloquial with cliche, can be repetitive - whether with word shadows or with events - and occasionally uses phrases whose meaning is the exact opposite of what he's trying to convey. For example, when asserting that one of Chapman's British interrogators was perhaps warming to him slightly, he writes "He soon became aware that his tormentor was unbending slightly." Forgive me if I'm wrong here, but "unbending" is another word for inflexible or stubborn, no?

And for what it's worth his use of, and translation from, German is at times atrocious - though that probably marks me out for the pedant I am!

Beyond that, the only big flaw is that Booth is too willing to give Chapman and his wife the benefit of the doubt - when a wife who has been continuously cheated on says it wasn't the man's fault that women came after him, that's not grounds for dismissing Chapman's reputation as a Lothario. It's more like someone trying to deceive herself.

BUT, it is a cracking story, and Booth has researched the subject well - though I tend to agree that Chapman's actual effectiveness is somewhat overblown. So despite the flaws, I still enjoyed it - I like the subject matter, and the structure Booth puts into the story works well. The writing, though, drops it to a two star from three or even possibly four stars.

Although the narrative style of 'Zigzag' by Nicholas Booth isn't as fast paced as Ben Macintyre's 'Agent Zigzag' (which, incidentally, also details the life and adventures of real life WWII superspy Eddie Chapman and was published at the same time) it provides much background and historical context material left out of Macintyre's book. My suggestion, though, is to read Macintyre's 'Agent Zigzag' first. It reads like a great spy novel; once you pick it up, you can't put it down, and it's all true! (I was glued to it and finished it in two nights.) If your reaction is anything like mine, you'll want to know more and you can find it in this more measured account provided by Nicholas Booth in 'Zigzag.' I highly recommend both books. They are well worth reading, not to mention making into a movie! - Tom Hanks, if I remember correctly, has bought the movie rights, but a film has yet to be made.

(I received no compensation whatsoever for the endorsement of these two books.)

A war of spies, double crossing, and counter intelligence. Eddie Chapman, aka ZigZag or Fritzchen, enters this secret war from a life of crime, womanizing, and lies. When a prison, run by the British, is over taken in one of the first attacks of WW II from the Germans, Eddie Chapman, an inmate, offers his services and loyalty to his captors. After years of imprisonment the Germans finally take him up on his offer. From there Eddie Chapman is thrown into training that involves explosives, communication, and sabotage. When sent back to his homeland Eddie, known as Fritzchen to the German intelligence, is charged with the demolition of a factory. With the help of the British intelligence after months of interrogation Eddie, now ZigZag, pulls of one of the biggest bluffs in history. From there it is a thrilling tale of an extraordinary, witty man who can be praised for the protection of England, the end of a war, and the beginning of a whole new style of spies. Throughout his adventures Eddie Chapman was obsessed with women. ZigZag engages the reader and brings them into a story, well researched by Booth with newly released insight and the first hand details for Eddies¿ wife. This book takes non-fiction to a whole new level with its non-stop action and almost fiction like tale. If you are looking for a new take on WWII I strongly recommend ZigZag.

This nonfiction account of the life and times of British double agent Arnold Edward Chapman (aka ZigZag) is the stuff of novels. Some of Agent Eddie Chapman's exploits are so incredible that, if this were a fiction book, readers would complain that it wasn't believable. Yet all of his World War II exploits, good and bad alike, are true.

To begin, just who was this charismatic man who was able to not only fool the Nazis into accepting him as one of their own, while simultaneously helping the Allies to bring them down? As author Nicholas Booth notes, "Even by the standards of the fantasists, putative playboys, and incompetents who tried to spy against the Allies during the war, Eddie Chapman was unique. An ex-guardsman, a fiercely proud Geordie and, at various times, a petty criminal, a film extra, a wrestler, a self-confessed habitue of the Soho nightlife--indeed, later a nightclub owner--he had already achieved notoriety before the war as a safebreaker."

Chapman's exploits defy belief, and his skills as a charmer enabled him to not only work both sides effectively during World War II, but also to enjoy a life during the war that few could imagine. His motto was "never resist temptation," and he lived by that creed. Watching Chapman work his spy craft in this book is akin to taking in the entirety of the war, from nightclubs to the battlefield. He traveled the whole of the European Continent, escaping with his life a few times. He was parachuted into England by the Nazis to blow up factories (which he did not do, but convinced the Nazis otherwise); he was able to plant bombs on ships in Spain; he met Hitler; and he lived aboard a boat with a woman he loved in Oslo, all while serving as a spy for both sides.

Amazingly enough, the Germans even awarded him a medal for his service, and he remained friends with his German trainers long after the war, despite his role as a double agent. For years the UK kept his exploits quiet via the Official Secrets Act, but eventually the records were released, and "ZigZag" is the result. The book is a story backed up with exhaustive research, including intimate discussions by author Nicholas Booth with Eddie Chapman's wife, as well as the discovery of tapes that Chapman and his wife made after the war recounting their memories. As a result, the book serves not only as a fascinating read, but a well documented tool for future scholars.

The book is a great read and that's hard to find. The big thing about Eddie Chapman's story is it shows one of the millions or billions of instances in which a potentially solid fate sours when confronted with downturns, constrained opportunity, hormones, etc. Today,
such a de-railed character ends up with our growing population behind walls and barbed wire at Marion, Sing-Sing, or Leavenworth. Chapman's cleverness and sheer luck of circumstance let him turn his lemon of a livelihood into lemonade (a kind of career-skill, eh?). The portrayal of his Nazi handlers and their treatment of him has a twinge of Hogan's Heroes. Pick up the book. I am anxious read further to get others' take on the Eddie Chapman story....

I just wanted to say that I read this after trying to read "Agent Zigzag" and finding it rather impenetrable, for what it's worth, this one seemed much better written.

It's funny, too.

A fascinating read that had me turning pages deep into the night. And, the most amazing thing is that it's a true story! Good reading for anyone with a Walter Mitty complex or who just enjoys a good yarn.