World War II had many influential figures, whose incredible acts of bravery, skill and intelligence helped to turn the tide of the war. But few of them receive the recognition their actions deserve. In Secret Heroes of World War II, we meet the engineers, scientists, agents, even holy men, who were key to shaping the Allied war effort.

Discover the unbelievable stories of:

• Nancy Wake, the ‘outspoken, unstoppable Antipodean’, who became the most decorated Allied servicewoman of the war. She organised and led one of the most formidable Resistance groups in central France and was infamous to the Gestapo due to their inability to capture her.
• Hugh O’Flaherty, the priest who hid thousands of Allied POWs and Jews in the Vatican, while narrowly avoiding German assassination attempts.
• Pioneers including Alan Turing and J. Robert Oppenheimer, whose intellects were key to devastating advancements in strategy and weaponry.

The motives of those featured in this book vary, as do their methods. Some were prepared to deceive, betray, and even kill in order to achieve their goals, while others bravely offered nonviolent resistance. Although a number of these heroes survived the war, many met a brutally violent end.

Full of photographs, backstories, anecdotes and detailed accounts of incredible people, Heroes of World War II is a captivating compendium of wartime heroism.

Eric Chaline is a professional author and editor based in London.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

BACKROOM HEROES 10–11
• Enrico Fermi 12–15
• Howard Florey 16–19
• Reginald Jones 20–23
• Reginald Mitchell 24–27
• Robert Oppenheimer 28–31
• Alan Turing 32–35
• Robert Watson-Watt 36–39
• Barnes Wallis 40–43

ESPIONAGE HEROES 44–45
• Eddie Chapman 46–49
• Eric Erickson 50–53
• Christine Granville 54–57
• Virginia Hall 58–61
• Knut Haukelid 62–65
• Andrée Borrel 128–131
• Pierre Brossolette 132–135
• Wilhelm Canaris 136–139
• André Dewavrin 140–143
• Clemens von Galen 144–147
• Jean Moulin 148–151
• Martin Niemöller 152–155
• Hotsumi Ozaki 156–157
• Gilbert Renault 158–161
• Sophie Scholl 162–163
• Ariadna Scriabina 164–167
• Claus von Stauffenberg 168–171
• Adam von Trott zu Solz 172–173
• Escape heroes 174–175
• Douglas Bader 176–179
• Charles Coward 180–181
• Francis Foley 182–183
• Noor-un-Nisa Inayat Khan 66–69
• Fitzroy Maclean 70–73
• Ewen Montagu 74–77
• Eileen Nearne 78–79
• Dušan Popov 80–83
• Juan Pujol García 84–87
• Odette Sansom 88–89
• Leonard Siffleet 90–93
• Richard Sorge 94–97
• Violette Szabo 98–101
• Leopold Trepper 102–105
• Nancy Wake 106–109
• Forest Yeo-Thomas 110–113

RESISTANCE HEROES 114–115
• Mordechai Anielewicz 116–119
• Ludwig Beck 120–123
• Dietrich Bonhoeffer 124–127
• Andrée Borrel 128–131
• Pierre Brossolette 132–135
• Wilhelm Canaris 136–139
• André Dewavrin 140–143
• Clemens von Galen 144–147
• Jean Moulin 148–151
• Martin Niemöller 152–155
• Hotsumi Ozaki 156–157
• Gilbert Renault 158–161
• Sophie Scholl 162–163
• Ariadna Scriabina 164–167
• Claus von Stauffenberg 168–171
• Adam von Trott zu Solz 172–173

ESCAPE HEROES 174–175
• Douglas Bader 176–179
• Charles Coward 180–181
• Francis Foley 182–183
• Varian Fry 184–187
• Miep Gies 188–191
• Albert Göring 192–193
• Pierre Mairesse-Lebrun 194–195
• Hugh O’Flaherty 196–199
• Alexander Pechersky 200–203
• Oskar Schindler 204–207
• Irena Sendler 208–211
• Chiune Sugihara 212–213
• Raoul Wallenberg 214–217

FURTHER READING 218–219

Kids’ Books NZ
“Over 224 pages, we meet 55 WWII heroes from spies to engineers and scientists. Some survived the war, some were recognised for their bravery, and some were killed in action or tortured in concentration camps.
Each chapter has an introduction and then you turn the page and you’ll meet a hero you might not heard of before. Well researched, and one that people who are interested in war stories will find fascinating.” 

NZ Listener
“A tribute to the spies, scientists, resistance fighters and other backroom heroes of World War II”

Age Concern
“From the priest who hid thousands of POWs and Jews in the Vatican, to the Antipodean servicewoman who led a formidable Resistance group, prepare to be awed and captivated.”

Military Books Australia
“Whets the appetite to explore more deeply some of the extraordinary stories that emerged from the war that is now, almost, beyond living memory.”

RUSI (Royal United Services Institute)
“The presentation of Secret Heroes is a credit to the publisher. It is extremely well presented with high resolution photographs on the highest quality paper. A very enlightening and good read that brings to light quite a number of unknown heroes.”

The Senior Newspaper 
“Secret Heroes of World War II : takes you behind the curtain to meet the engineers, resistance fighters, spies, physicists and more who committed incredible acts of heroism amidst the chaos and danger oof World War II. From the priest who hid thousands of POWs and Jews in the Vatican, to the Antipodean servicewoman who led a
formidable Resistance group, prepare to be awed and captivated..”