The Zimmermann Telegram

By: Barbara W. Tuchman

Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon

Length: 7 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

In the dark winter of 1917, as World War I was deadlocked, Britain knew that Europe could be saved only if the United States joined the war. But President Wilson remained unshakable in his neutrality. Then, with a single stroke, the tool to propel America into the war came into a quiet British office. One of countless messages intercepted by the crack team of British decoders, the Zimmermann telegram was a top-secret message from Berlin inviting Mexico to join Japan in an invasion of the United States. Mexico would recover her lost American territories while keeping the U.S. occupied on her side of the Atlantic.

How Britain managed to inform America of Germany's plan without revealing that the German codes had been broken makes for an incredible, true story of espionage, intrigue, and international politics, as only Barbara W. Tuchman could tell it.

©1958 Barbara W. Tuchman (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“A true, lucid thriller…. Mrs. Tuchman makes the most of it with a creative writer’s sense of drama and a scholar’s obeisance to the evidence.” ( New York Times)

“The tale has most of the ingredients of an Eric Ambler spy thriller.” ( Saturday Review)

Great historical research

If you like well research books on historical topics I'm sure you will love this book. The Zimmermann Telegram reveals a lot of the culture and political conflicts that lead to the U.S. entering the first World War. I highly recommend it.

Alternative title: Why America Entered WWI

Entertaining, interesting and informative breakdown of the events that led the United States pivoting from avoiding the European war at all costs to a firm war footing.

Almost everyone knows that Pearl Harbor was the tipping point for the USA to enter WWII, but are ignorant of the reasons for entry into the First World War.

The small stories of history are often the most interesting, as this book so demonstrates so clearly.

Weirder than fiction

President Wilson was a more stubborn appeaser of Germany than Chamberlain 20 years later, as this page-turner of a historical narrative shows. ‘Peace without Victory’ was Wilson’s proposed solution to a war started by an authoritarian expansionist military power against a democratic alliance. Fascinating book.

Facts, facts and more facts

Tuchman is a pulitzer prize winner for a reason.
The story was good, the facts good, the pace good, but not my cup of tea - for the history buff you will love it.

The narrator was good, but he voice a bit soft for my ears. I had trouble following some passages

A key to modern history

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, I had read

Who was your favorite character and why?

Zimmerman, of course.

Have you listened to any of Wanda McCaddon’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No

History is a lot more twisted than we know!

What an amazing look at the behind the scenes twists and turns of history! How little we really know about what moves nations and governments. This book helps you to see that.

My first audiobook

Interesting, informative account of the events and circumstances leading to US decision to enter WWI. The reading was well done at a comfortable pace. I had difficulty with keeping track of all the characters (German, English, American, etc). I suspect that I need to see the names on the page to better remember their role in the story, but this did not distract from understanding and appreciating the story.

great listen

so much more depth and color to an event already obscured by history. an fascinating read for any fan of ww1 or American history

The Road to WWI and the death of US innocence

A portrait of the American government that we can still recognize 100 years later. The same arguments in every institution on the verge of war.

A Fine Listen

A fine listen. Tuchman conveys a great deal of information in just seven hours, yet The Zimmermann Telegraph never feels crammed. Wanda McCaddon turns in a solid reading. The narration, I think, highlights this book's sense of the absurd. At times, it was almost like these people were vying with each other in folly, a contest that Zimmermann eventually "wins".