• Alan Turing: The Enigma

  • By: Andrew Hodges
  • Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
  • Length: 30 hrs and 40 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (1,932 ratings)

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Alan Turing: The Enigma

By: Andrew Hodges
Narrated by: Gordon Griffin
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Editorial reviews

Alan Turing: The Enigma is written by Mathematician Andrew Hodges and is narrated in this biographical audiobook edition by Gordon Griffin. The book went on to be inspiration for the 2014 Academy Award-nominated film The Imitation Game. This is the tragic story of a genius whose profound contributions were doubted for decades and whose personal life was utterly persecuted. After an official public apology from the UK Prime Minister in 2009 and a posthumous pardon from the Queen in 2013, the life of Alan Turing has finally been honoured. This book provides the telling of Turing’s life story that he so rightly deserves history to remember. Available now from Audible.

Publisher's summary

Listed as one of the essential 50 books of all time in The Guardian

Inspired the Academy Award-nominated film, The Imitation Game

It’s only a slight exaggeration to say that the British mathematician Alan Turing (1912-1954) saved the Allies from the Nazis, invented the computer and artificial intelligence, and anticipated gay liberation by decades--all before his suicide at age forty-one. This classic biography of the founder of computer science, reissued on the centenary of his birth with a substantial new preface by the author, is the definitive account of an extraordinary mind and life.

A gripping story of mathematics, computers, cryptography, and homosexual persecution, Andrew Hodges's acclaimed book captures both the inner and outer drama of Turing's life.Hodges tells how Turing's revolutionary idea of 1936--the concept of a universal machine--laid the foundation for the modern computer and how Turing brought the idea to practical realization in 1945 with his electronic design. The book also tells how this work was directly related to Turing's leading role in breaking the German Enigma ciphers during World War II, a scientific triumph that was critical to Allied victory in the Atlantic. At the same time, this is the tragic story of a man who, despite his wartime service, was eventually arrested, stripped of his security clearance, and forced to undergo a humiliating treatment program--all for trying to live honestly in a society that defined homosexuality as a crime.

©2012 Andrew Hodges (P)2012 Audible Ltd

Critic reviews

"A first-rate presentation of the life of a first-rate scientific mind...it is hard to imagine a more thoughtful and warm biography than this one." ( NYT Book Review)
"A superb biography. . . . Written by a mathematician, it describes in plain language Turing's work on the foundations of computer science and how he broke the Germans' Enigma code in the Second World War. The subtle depiction of class rivalries, personal relationships, and Turing's tragic end are worthy of a novel. But this was a real person. Hodges describes the man, and the science that fascinated him--which once saved, and still influences, our lives." (Margaret Boden, New Scientist)
"One of the finest scientific biographies I've ever read: authoritative, superbly researched, deeply sympathetic and beautifully told." (Sylvia Nasar, author of A Beautiful Mind.)
"One of the finest scientific biographies ever written." ( Jim Holt, New Yorker)
"A first-class contribution to history and an exemplary work of biography." (I. J. Good, Nature)
"An almost perfect match of biographer and subject. . . . [A] great book." ( Ray Monk, Guardian)

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What listeners say about Alan Turing: The Enigma

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  • Overall
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    3 out of 5 stars

Ok but not great

Of listen nothing great. Would get if on sale only….. need more meat s as bout his creations than his sex lofe

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Too much detail

I must not have noticed how long this book is when I bought it. A very complete story, at least as much as other people knew what he was thinking. I still have questions. The first part is full of detail about the math and engineering he was thinking about and what was required to break the German code. The second part is very detailed about the social mores and attitudes of the time about homosexuality. Again, just lots of detail about everything.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Philosophy and Mathematical Foundations of Computing

Excellent coverage of the philosophical passions that drove Alan Turning to directly and significantly impact the outcome of World War 2 and launch the concept of universal computing machines and the modern era of information technology.

Great content and story, but the reader speaks very slowly and swallows a lot. I found the listening more tolerable at 1.4X speed.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Rambles and Jumps around way too much

I have been interested in Turing for a long time. But this just rambles way too much. It would have been nice had there been more focus on his accomplishments... As presented he just feels like a pitiful character. I didn't enjoy at all.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Dense, but interesting

Very dense, very technical at times. But, quite interesting story if you have the patience to zone out at parts and not sweat understanding all the details. Helps to have a modest prior understanding of 1930-1950 history of science. Narrator’s accents for certain characters gets in the way a several points.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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Too technical

Early childhood parts good but I couldn’t hold on.
Didn’t finish which rarely happens. Especially in audio.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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The Nerd and the Human

This goes from childhood through death, covering all the personal and professional topics you'd want to know about this hero. The technical content is just right for the kind of nerds who look up to him enough to listen to a 40-hour bio. (-:

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Overdone

The reading is well performed; the subject Allan Turing is interesting; the author prefers five words when two will do, and injects his personal interpretation of history, the meaning of life, and his view of the world, all into the life of Allan Turing.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Informative but Ponderous

Way too many words. It captures Alan Turing's story and character. The background context description often drift into the irrelevant. The technical descriptions usually need an engineering or physics degree to follow them.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Listening to this is a test of one's determination

Despite being one of the most fascinating individuals in the 20th century, this book is dull to the point of frustration. It seems the writer could not decide what pieces of information would be interesting for the reader, so he literally included every word ever uttered by or about Alan Turing.
The narration is perfectly suited to this prolix story, making the task of finishing the three hours long opening credits an herculean task.

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