A Game of Birds and Wolves

The Ingenious Young Women Whose Secret Board Game Helped Win World War II

By: Simon Parkin

Narrated by: Elliot Fitzpatrick

Length: 10 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

As heard on the New Yorker Radio Hour: The triumphant and "engaging history" (The New Yorker) of the young women who devised a winning strategy that defeated Nazi U-boats and delivered a decisive victory in the Battle of the Atlantic.

By 1941, Winston Churchill had come to believe that the outcome of World War II rested on the battle for the Atlantic. A grand strategy game was devised by Captain Gilbert Roberts and a group of 10 Wrens (members of the Women's Royal Naval Service) assigned to his team in an attempt to reveal the tactics behind the vicious success of the German U-boats. Played on a linoleum floor divided into painted squares, it required model ships to be moved across a make-believe ocean in a manner reminiscent of the childhood game Battleship. Through play, the designers developed "Operation Raspberry", a counter-maneuver that helped turn the tide of World War II.

Combining vibrant novelistic storytelling with extensive research, interviews, and previously unpublished accounts, Simon Parkin describes for the first time the role that women played in developing the Allied strategy that, in the words of one admiral, "contributed in no small measure to the final defeat of Germany". Rich with unforgettable cinematic detail and larger-than-life characters, A Game of Birds and Wolves is a heart-wrenching tale of ingenuity, dedication, perseverance, and love, bringing to life the imagination and sacrifice required to defeat the Nazis at sea.

©2020 Simon Parkin (P)2020 Little, Brown & Company

Critic reviews

"With novelistic flair, Parkin transforms material gathered from research, interviews, and unpublished accounts into a highly readable book that celebrates the ingenuity of a British naval 'reject' and the accomplishments of the formerly faceless women never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)

"A Game of Birds and Wolves brings to life one of the most elusive aspects of war...compelling." (New York Times Book Review)

"History writing at its best." (Booklist, starred review)

Honoring women's vital role

This account of the vital and unrecognized role of women during World War II's Battle of the Atlantic is well worth reading.

pretty good for non fiction

I mostly listen to fiction because I prefer to read non fiction. but I found this easy to listen to. almost to much background about the people involved but that just made the story more relatable. a lesser known part of WW2 I am glad to know about.

Title is misleading...

but the book is interesting.
It's about u-boat warfare in the Atlantic and the man who developed the game which was crucial to the British defense (used to develop strategy and train officials).
The fact that women were involved in this effort is effectively highlighted by the author but they aren't the focus here. Instead, his attempts to make the book about them give it a bit of a split personality.

So, I have some issues with the overall organization, but I gave the book 4 stars. Why? It's one of those history books which does work in this audio format. Overall, it's easy to stay engaged and follow ideas. In the end, it was a mix of military and social history that left me with new insights into WWII.

Outstanding rendition of an important but overlooked legacy

Over 30,000 merchant sailors died in the Second World War Battle of the Atlantic. The unrecognized intelligence work of the thousands of women who raced to save them needs to be honoured. This book is an excellent memorial to their unsung, top secret dedication to duty.

A Game of Birds and Wolves

Basic plot: A bit of WWII history. Not a riveting story of ocean battle, like C. S. Forester's The Good Shepherd, but rather a study of North Atlantic battle strategies to protect allied supply convoys from German U-boat attacks. The strategies are developed by the British using a large warehouse-type floor, string, models of ships and submarines, and Wrens. Wrens are the British equivalent of the US Wacs and Waves, the women who, in my opinion, were the backbone of the armed services. WWII would not have been a victory for the allies if not for these underpaid, incredible heroines ruefully ignored in the written history of the war until recently.

Liked. Learning a hidden history.

Not so hot. The first half of the book is a backstory of submariners, officers, one-upmanship, egos - both British and German - pre-game-development. The actual game development and successful strategies aren't presented until Chapter 11. Some, in my opinion, is fill not relevant to the story. The book is a bit misogynistic, but I suppose true to the time; the Wrens are almost incidental to the story - in reality, they were not. That's just me; you may find it peachy.

Written by Simon Parkin, narrated by Elliot Fitzpatrick, just over ten hours of listening, released in January 2020 by Little, Brown & Company.

Fascinating account

Brilliantly written and narrated, great story of unsung heroes and heroines of WWII's Atlantic War

For a book about women naval strategist

...the author pick an odd filter to tell their tale, from the men's point of view. I never knew the history of Wren's involvement during WWII and now only know a bit more than before after listening to this book. The author chose relay the information about this organization of women naval strategist from nearly a completely male centric point of view. Even going so far as the relay anecdotal account from the men U-boat captains, where they partied, what they drank, and what women they slept with.

I'm not sure.what to make of this book. had the books byline simply stated that this was a book navy tactics between allied forces and Nazi Germany, then I may not have been this critical, but it didn't say that.

not a bad book, just wished the summary would have been different.

A misleading explanation about the story

I enjoyed this book, but it had VERY little content about the women who did so much. It was quite informative about the operation, but gave very little credit to the women.

Important History

It was an important story to be told. And as the author says in the book, it is really heart breaking that relatives don't save women's diaries and papers. The men got medals and permission to write their histories but the women were held to the promises of secrecy that they made and minimal recognition. So much history is lost.

The Orchestration of WW-2

An Audible experience that put me on the front lines of WW-2 amidst the chaos of war and the militia responsible for saving lives while winning the war. This story acknowledges the significance of the Wrens. A must listen, or read, to understand what goes on behind the fighting front lines.