Spy on History: Victor Dowd and the World War II Ghost Army

Synopsis: Did you know the Allied army used blow-up tanks, guns and special sound effects to trick the German army into thinking they were in one place, when they were actually somewhere else? Well it happened and if you want to learn more, check out this title.

The Ghost Army landed on the beach in Normandy after D-Day and then proceeded to cross France helping to push the Germans back and eventually helping to cross the Rhine River into Germany where they found a confused and disorganized German army (because the majority of the army was 10 miles south keeping an eye on the Ghost Army which they thought was where the Allied forces would cross the Rhine. These are the types of nonfiction titles I enjoy, books that share little known stories of real people in history just doing their job, but also doing amazing things at the same time!

Review: I’ve never understood how we can go through our entire school education and not hear about these amazing stories, that I guarantee, would keep a lot more kids interested in learning! I had heard of the Ghost Army in a very brief way and didn’t really know anything about the amazing things this small group of soldiers did to end the war. To me, it’s spectacular to think that something like this can work, but with artists, sound engineers, and others whose job it was to put on a show for the Germans it worked. Granted most of the information about the Ghost Army was classified until 1996, but I hope that as more of these types of stories come to light, they are taught as part of the history curriculum in school districts around the country.

This book would be perfect for middle grade readers who like history, nonfiction, adventure and interactive stories. Not only is it a quick (nonfiction) read the book is also interactive with spy tools that can be used to crack the code making this a hands-on educational tool for kids.Although this title is difficult to keep in a library due to the spy tools, it’s definitely one that would make a great gift! This is actually the second title in the series, following Mary Bowser and the Civil War Spy Ring with a third title coming out later this year or early next year titled, Anna Strong and the Revolutionary Culper Ring.

Title: Spy on History: Victor Dowd and the World War II Ghost Army
Author: Enigma Alberti
Illustrator: Scott Wegener
Publisher: Workman Publishing
Publication Date: January 23, 2018
Page Number: 94 pgs.