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Simon Singh

The Code Book: The Secrets Behind Codebreaking Paperback – August 12, 2003

by Simon Singh (Author)

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"As gripping as a good thriller." --The Washington Post

Unpack the science of secrecy and discover the methods behind cryptography--the encoding and decoding of information--in this clear and easy-to-understand young adult adaptation of the national bestseller that's perfect for this age of WikiLeaks, the Sony hack, and other events that reveal the extent to which our technology is never quite as secure as we want to believe.

Coders and codebreakers alike will be fascinated by history's most mesmerizing stories of intrigue and cunning--from Julius Caesar and his Caeser cipher to the Allies' use of the Enigma machine to decode German messages during World War II.

Accessible, compelling, and timely, The Code Book is sure to make readers see the past--and the future--in a whole new way.

"Singh's power of explaining complex ideas is as dazzling as ever." --The Guardian

Reading age

12 years and up
Print length

272 pages
Language

English
Grade level

7 - 9
Lexile measure

1310L
Dimensions

5.5 x 0.55 x 8.25 inches
Publisher

Delacorte Press
Publication date

August 12, 2003
ISBN-10

0385730624
ISBN-13

978-0385730624
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Singh utilizes an effective narrative style and intersperses fascinating events and people.”–School Library Journal

From the Inside Flap

Its known as the science of secrecy. Cryptography: the encoding and decoding of private information. And it is historys most fascinating story of intrigue and cunning. From Julius Caesar and his Caesar Cipher to the code used by Mary Queen of Scots and her conspiracy to the use of the Engima machine during the Second World War, Simon Singh follows the evolution of secret writing.

Accessible, compelling, and timely, this international bestseller, now adapted for young people, is sure to make readers see the pastand the futurein a whole new way.

From the Hardcover edition.

From the Back Cover

It's known as the science of secrecy. Cryptography: the encoding and decoding of private information. And it is history's most fascinating story of intrigue and cunning. From Julius Caesar and his Caesar Cipher to the code used by Mary Queen of Scots and her conspiracy to the use of the Engima machine during the Second World War, Simon Singh follows the evolution of secret writing.
Accessible, compelling, and timely, this international bestseller, now adapted for young people, is sure to make readers see the past--and the future--in a whole new way.

"From the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Simon Singh is the bestselling author of Fermat’s Enigma, The Code Book, Big Bang, Trick or Treatment?: Alternative Medicine on Trial, and The Simpsons and Their Mathematical Secrets. He lives in London.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

1

The Cipher of Mary Queen of Scots

The birth of cryptography, the substitution cipher and the invention of codebreaking by frequency analysis

On the morning of Saturday, October 15, 1586, Queen Mary entered the crowded courtroom at Fotheringhay Castle. Years of imprisonment and the onset of rheumatism had taken their toll, yet she remained dignified, composed and indisputably regal. Assisted by her physician, she made her way past the judges, officials and spectators, and approached the throne that stood halfway along the long, narrow chamber. Mary had assumed that the throne was a gesture of respect toward her, but she was mistaken. The throne symbolized the absent Queen Elizabeth, Mary's enemy and prosecutor. Mary was gently guided away from the throne and toward the opposite side of the room, to the defendant's seat, a crimson velvet chair.

Mary Queen of Scots was on trial for treason. She had been accused of plotting to assassinate Queen Elizabeth in order to take the English crown for herself. Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth's principal secretary, had already arrested the other conspirators, extracted confessions and executed them. Now he planned to prove that Mary was at the heart of the plot, and was therefore equally to blame and equally deserving of death.

Walsingham knew that before he could have Mary executed, he would have to convince Queen Elizabeth of her guilt. Although Elizabeth despised Mary, she had several reasons for being reluctant to see her put to death. First, Mary was a Scottish queen, and many questioned whether an English court had the authority to execute a foreign head of state. Second, executing Mary might establish an awkward precedent--if the state is allowed to kill one queen, then perhaps rebels might have fewer reservations about killing another, namely, Elizabeth. Third, Elizabeth and Mary were cousins, and their blood tie made Elizabeth all the more squeamish about ordering her execution. In short, Elizabeth would sanction Mary's execution only if Walsingham could prove beyond any hint of doubt that she had been part of the assassination plot.

The conspirators were a group of young English Catholic noblemen intent on removing Elizabeth, a Protestant, and replacing her with Mary, a fellow Catholic. It was apparent to the court that Mary was a figurehead for the conspirators, but it was not clear that she had given her blessing to the conspiracy. In fact, Mary had authorized the plot. The challenge for Walsingham was to demonstrate a clear link between Mary and the plotters.

On the morning of her trial, Mary sat alone in the dock, dressed in sorrowful black velvet. In cases of treason, the accused was forbidden counsel and was not permitted to call witnesses. Mary was not even allowed secretaries to help her prepare her case. However, her plight was not hopeless, because she had been careful to ensure that all her correspondence with the conspirators had been written in cipher. The cipher turned her words into a meaningless series of symbols, and Mary believed that even if Walsingham had captured the letters, he could have no idea of the meaning of the words within them. If their contents were a mystery, then the letters could not be used as evidence against her. However, this all depended on the assumption that her cipher had not been broken.

Unfortunately for Mary, Walsingham was not merely principal secretary, but also England's spymaster. He had intercepted Mary's letters to the plotters, and he knew exactly who might be capable of deciphering them. Thomas Phelippes was the nation's foremost expert on breaking codes, and for years he had been deciphering the messages of those who plotted against Queen Elizabeth, thereby providing the evidence needed to condemn them. If he could decipher the incriminating letters between Mary and the conspirators, then her death would be inevitable. On the other hand, if Mary's cipher was strong enough to conceal her secrets, then there was a chance that she might survive. Not for the first time, a life hung on the strength of a cipher.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Delacorte Press; Illustrated edition (August 12, 2003)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 272 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0385730624
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0385730624
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 12 years and up
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 1310L
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 7 - 9
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.55 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #45,637 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #3 in Teen & Young Adult Electricity & Electronics
- #15 in Computer Science for Teens & Young Adults
- #23 in Mathematics for Teens & Young Adults

Customer Reviews:
316 ratings

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Simon Singh

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Simon Singh is a science journalist and TV producer. Having completed his PhD at Cambridge he worked from 1991 to 1997 at the BBC producing Tomorrow's World and co-directing the BAFTA award-winning documentary Fermat's Last Theorem for the Horizon series. He is the author of Fermat's Last Theorem, which was a no 1 bestseller in Britain and translated into 22 languages. In 1999, he wrote The Code Book which was also an international bestseller and the basis for the Channel 4 series The Science of Secrecy.

Customer reviews

5 star		71%
4 star		17%
3 star		9%
2 star		1%
1 star		2%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Sonia L.

Good book

Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2021

Verified Purchase

My 12 year old really enjoyed this book. He said it was really informative, but not boring, and that it even taught him how to break codes :). Good purchase - recommend it!

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

SharpsburgSamurai

I bought this for my son who is 14 years ...

Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2016

Verified Purchase

I bought this for my son who is 14 years old and interested in cryptology. Some part may be challenging for him although it is for 12 and up. I had to review permutation/combination (basics of statistics?) to keep up with the content half way through. It is well written, engaging, and informative.

15 people found this helpful

Helpful

kg4giy

A good review of the history of codes and code-breaking.

Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2018

Verified Purchase

Wondering what they used to do before computers to send secret messages? This is the book for you, and for a look ahead. Simon makes the history of codes, code-breaking, and code creation interesting and engaging. You want to play with them when you are done, even though many are easily broken with today's technology. Fun for the whole family.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Dr Ricardo Davidson

Good coverage of a complicated subject

Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2018

Verified Purchase

This is a light weight version of The Code Book from the same author. Very thorough, very enjoyable and enriching. More accessible than The Code Book, it should perhaps be read by a wider readership.

7 people found this helpful

Helpful

Barbara Davidson

Fascinating facts of coding in history

Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2021

Verified Purchase

I have long been fascinated with this subject and enjoyed this book. Most of it I understood. The mathematical parts were over my head but there was so much info I could understand that I didn’t mind the parts I couldn’t.

Helpful

Murray Duffin

Very good

Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2019

Verified Purchase

The book was purchased as a gift for a teen very interested in all aspects of cyber tools and outputs. She was delighted by the book, and had no negative comments.

Helpful

PattyA

A fascinating historical read

Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2018

Verified Purchase

I purchased this book as a gift, but I started reading it to check it out, and before I knew, I had read the entire book! It is filled with fascinating anecdotes about the role of codes at so many critical junctures in history, and it will give your brain a workout! Highly recommend, for adults as well as inquisitive teens!

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Debbie Anderson

Great teaching tools written with such an in depth knowledge ...

Reviewed in the United States on September 30, 2017

Verified Purchase

Great teaching tools written with such an in depth knowledge and understanding of the topic that you come away with satisfaction of learning something not just about encryption but the how history and cryptography worked together to shape the world we live in now. Great read.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

John Manton

This seems to be a slightly reduced version of "The Code Book" by the same author. It may also be cheaper.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 23, 2013

Verified Purchase

This is essentially "The Code Book" minus a few photographs. A very detailed and logical description of the various ciphers used over the centuries and the clever techniques adopted in decrypting them. It explains for the first time in the public domain the UK contribution to the science of modern cryptography and gives credit to those involved who would otherwise have gone unrecognised for their revolutionary discoveries.

Very well written and very readable for the interested, intelligent layman.

4 people found this helpful

mr k.s.j. preston

Excellent book.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 14, 2017

Verified Purchase

Absolutely fabulous book, if you like cracking codes/ciphers/puzzles, now my expertise has gone up at least 3 levels, and much more enjoyment too, well written in simple easy to understand language

Kevin Jensen

Great read!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 11, 2020

Verified Purchase

Great book. I bought this for my son who is into computer security.

Javier Espinosa

Amusing book about cryptology

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 17, 2010

Verified Purchase

Very good book to read about cryptology in Second World War (Europe, not Pacific). It is focus in the Enigma cipher and how it was broken. The good thing about it, it talks about the Polish contribution and not only about the British final unscramble of the cipher. Enjoyable.

2 people found this helpful

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 15, 2016

Verified Purchase

A perfect introduction to code and cypher. Explain both history and mechanisms of codes.

One person found this helpful

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Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

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Simon Singh

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