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The Road to Station X

From Debutante Ball to Fighter-Plane Factory to Bletchley Park: A Memoir of One Woman’s Journey Through World War Two

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The Road to Station X

By: Sarah Baring
Narrated by: Polly Lee
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In 1938, Sarah Baring was enjoying life as a young debutante. Only a few years later, at the height of World War Two, she was working alongside some of the greatest minds of Britain in their code-breaking operations at Bletchley Park.

How did she end up in the top-secret world of cyphers and codes?

Like many young men and women across all levels of British society, the outbreak of war in 1939 dramatically altered the course of Sarah's life.

Knowing that she could not stand by while others were enlisting, she left her position in Vogue magazine and signed up to work as a telephonist at an Air Raid Precautions Centre before working in a fighter plane factory to do her bit.

Yet, after just a few months, she was requested to leave the factory behind and was thrust into the world of intelligence, code-breaking, and huge computers, rubbing shoulders with awkward geniuses like Alan Turing.

The Road to Station X provides a window into the life of a young woman who shifted from being a carefree debutante to factory girl to working with code-breakers in Bletchley Park as a result of the turbulent events of World War Two.

©2000 Edward Baring (P)2021 Tantor Historical Military War Memoir
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I enjoyed the story and having an insight into “BP”, but feel the narrator should have familiarised herself with the pronunciation of words relevant to the employment. For example, bow as the tying of two ends of a ribbon which, in relation to the front of a ship, should be bow as bending from the waist.

Pronunciation leaves something to be desired

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Great bit of writing, to set the screen for the worst part of history and what was done at BP, which people should go and have a look round it is a amazing place, if you read this book before or after the visit you will get what the lady was trying to get across.

Britain at its best

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Great concise rendition of Sarah Barings work in WW2 as an SOE, Interesting fascinating and perfectly delivered by Polly Lee.

Fabulous tour de force

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if any one wa to to learn about the war , this certainly is a very very good book to listen too.
explained so well by the narater.

excellent story.

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This is a fascinating book, very well written and very well performed. You feel as if you were there. The narrator does mispronounce a few things occasionally – such as “Louis Mountbatten” (the ‘s’ should be silent) and “renowned” – but her mistakes are very rare. She has a beautiful voice which is absolutely perfect for the role, and it is lovely to hear a traditional English accent. The book shows why we should all be proud to be English. We owe a great debt to our parents who undertook war work helping to defeat Hitler.

Excellent

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