The Zimmermann Telegram

By: Barbara W. Tuchman

Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon

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)

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".

Very enlightening!

A very enlightening exposition of the German's intrigue that forced America into war. i knew about the telegram, but not all of the action that led to it and the players involved.