Bøker av Sinclair McKay

A beautiful collector' s edition of Aurum' s popular title, The Lost World of Bletchley Park, newly redesigned and featuring removable facsimile documents.

The Sunday Times-bestselling author of Dresden returns with a monumental biography of the city that defined the twentieth century - Berlin'I loved this book . . . apposite and wise . . . To anyone who knows Berlin a little and is fascinated by it, but would like to understand it better, this is a wonderful aid' David Aaronovitch, The Times Throughout the twentieth century, Berlin stood at the centre of a convulsing world. This history is often viewed as separate acts: the suffering of the First World War, the cosmopolitan city of science, culture and sexual freedom Berlin became, steep economic plunges, the rise of the Nazis, the destruction of the Second World War, the psychosis of genocide, and a city rent in two by competing ideologies. But people do not live their lives in fixed eras. An epoch ends, yet the people continue - or try to continue - much as they did before. Berlin tells the story of the city as seen through the eyes not of its rulers, but of those who walked its streets.In this magisterial biography of a city and its inhabitants, bestselling historian Sinclair McKay sheds new light on well-known characters - from idealistic scientist Albert Einstein to Nazi architect Albert Speer - and draws on never-before-seen first-person accounts to introduce us to people of all walks of Berlin life. For example, we meet office worker Mechtild Evers, who in her efforts to escape an oncoming army runs into even more appalling jeopardy, and Reinhart Cruger, a 12-year-old boy in 1941 who witnesses with horror the Gestapo coming for each of his Jewish neighbours in turn. Ever a city of curious contrasts, moments of unbelievable darkness give way to a wry Berliner humour - from banned perms to the often ridiculous tit-for-tat between East and West Berlin - and moments of joyous hope - like forced labourers at a jam factory warmly welcoming their Soviet liberators.How did those ideologies - fascism and communism - come to flower so fully here? And how did their repercussions continue to be felt throughout Europe and the West right up until that extraordinary night in the autumn of 1989 when the Wall - that final expression of totalitarian oppression - was at last breached? You cannot understand the twentieth century without understanding Berlin; and you cannot understand Berlin without understanding the experiences of its people. Drawing on a staggering breadth of culture - from art to film, opera to literature, science to architecture - McKay's latest masterpiece shows us this hypnotic city as never before.

Pit your wits against the brilliant minds of Scotland Yard, from the bestselling author of Bletchley Park Brainteasers.

The first oral history of one of the most fascinating aspects of the war effort.

Built by slave labour in the early years of the eighteenth century, Saint Petersburg was Peter the Great's so-called 'window on to Europe', a city that would outdo all of Europe in its splendour. But a window works both ways, and as bestselling historian Sinclair McKay writes, St Petersburg has always been a city that has drawn Westerners who wanted to see into Russia. It is also a city where much has happened. It was St Petersburg until 1917, Petrograd after the revolution, Leningrad after Lenin's death in 1924, and St Petersburg once again from 1991.This biography of a city stretches from Peter the Great to Vladimir Putin, who was born and made in St Petersburg. The story centres the '900 days and nights' of the Siege of Leningrad, 1941-44. Unlike Paris or Prague, the Nazis weren't trying to take over, they wanted to wipe it off the map. According to some, this siege of 1.5 million people - including Putin's mother - was an attempted genocide. Based on first-hand and many unpublished accounts from figures from all walks of life - irascible authors, factory workers, bakers, furriers, dancers, sailors, grandparents, children - this masterpiece reveals the central importance of St Petersburg over the centuries. This is the story of the city told from the perspective of the people who lived there.

Become a top-secret codebreaker and learn all about Bletchley Park and the incredible history of codebreaking! Crammed with crosswords, riddles, number games and brainteasers, and written by bestselling author Sinclair McKay, this book will delight budding puzzlers while giving children a rare glimpse into the fascinating work of Bletchley Park.

A hundred short biographies of people who worked at the secret wartime codebreaking base of Bletchley Park, and went on in their postwar lives to all manner of remarkable achievements, from government office to composing the score for Dracula films, by the author of the bestselling The Secret Life of Bletchley Park.

A history of walking and our relationship with the British countryside.

Take a deep dive into the incredible history of the Tower of London and crack conundrums inspired by the incredible events that still haunt the Tower's walls to this day.

Bestselling author Sinclair McKay gives a gripping account of a murder in the heart of Victorian London, which intrigued and scandalised Bloomsbury society.

Pit your wits against the greatest minds of our time with brain bogglers, puzzles and hidden codes inspired by the secret services.

The Secret Life of Fighter Command tells the story of the men and women of Fighter Command who worked tirelessly in air bases scattered throughout the UK during the Battle of Britain to thwart the Nazi attacks and protect Britain.

Bletchley Park Brainteasers is a captivating book authored by the brilliant Sinclair McKay. Published in 2017 by the renowned Headline Publishing Group, this book falls under a unique genre that combines history with puzzle-solving. Bletchley Park Brainteasers takes you on an intriguing journey back to the era of World War II, where the Bletchley Park was the central hub for British codebreakers. Sinclair McKay masterfully intertwines historical facts with mind-boggling brainteasers that were actually used to recruit codebreakers during the war. This book not only provides an insightful look into the secretive world of codebreaking but also challenges your mind with its array of puzzles. Whether you are a history enthusiast or a puzzle lover, Bletchley Park Brainteasers is a book that you won't be able to put down. Experience the thrill of cracking codes and uncovering secrets, all while being immersed in the rich history of the Bletchley Park.

Behind the celebrated code-breaking at Bletchley Park lies another secret.