Young Readers Edition

The Code Book

I was tremendously excited when my publishers asked me to write a Young Readers edition of The Code Book. It had not previously occurred to me to write about cryptography for a younger readership, but with hindsight it is obvious that the tales of intrigue that surround codebreaking are an excellent vehicle for conveying science to an audience beyond the adults for whom I usually write.

For the last ten years I have been working in radio, television and books in order to increase understanding and appreciation of science and mathematics among the general public, so it is particularly pleasing to know that this edition of The Code Book will be reaching a completely new audience. In Europe, there is a general decline in students taking up science, and I suspect that the same is true in North America and other parts of the world. I hope that the Young Readers edition of The Code Book will, in some small way, excite young minds and inspire teenagers to pursue an interest in science.

My main concern in adapting the book has been to maintain the central thread of The Code Book, which demonstrates how ciphers have evolved through the centuries, how they have influenced history, and how they are more important in the Information Age than ever before. At the same time, I have substantially edited the material, so that readers are not intimidated by what would otherwise be a 400-page text. Instead, I hope that teenagers are attracted towards an accessible and gripping book, which offers insights into history, language, mathematics, computers, and politics.