Books
Middle Grade Non-Fiction
Totally True Tales from World War II (Spy School Secret Files)

Totally True Tales from World War II (Spy School Secret Files)

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Author(s)

Stuart Gibbs

Co-Authors / Illustrators

Ward Jenkins

Publisher

Simon & Schuster Books

Genre(s)

Age Range

Release Date

November 10, 2026

ISBN

978-1665986809

Buy This Book

Ben Ripley—the middle school superspy in Stuart Gibbs’s New York Times bestselling Spy School series—shares true stories of World War II operations, some never before disclosed, in this engaging nonfiction middle grade book packed with maps, diagrams, and mission briefings!

Benjamin Ripley, young spy-in-training at the Central Intelligence Agency, has always been impressed by super-cool, incredibly capable spies from movies. But there have been plenty of real spies throughout history that no one has heard of because they operated in secrecy on classified missions. But now, some of those amazing stories are declassified…

Join Ben as he shares the true stories behind World War II’s courageous spies, their inventive commanders, and the incredible things they did, like commando raids, code-breaking, double-crosses, disinformation, and inventing shark repellant and exploding pancake batter (really). There are amazing stories about famous spies like Julia Child, John Ford, and Sterling Hayden, plus countless others who risked their lives and took great risks to keep the world safe from evil.

Editor review

1 review

Fun nonfiction companion to the Spy School series.

April 07, 2026 (Updated: June 04, 2026)

Overall rating

4.0

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

4.0

Learning Value

4.0

Ben Ripley, the main character of Gibbs' Spy School series, wants to shed some light on the history of spy craft. After a brief mention of the history of espionage, he concentrates on the creation of the US involvement in World War II in 1941, when the need for the US to gather intelligence grew. He highlights "Wild" Bill Donovan, whom President Roosevelt made the Coordinator of Information, and runs from there.

There are chapters on research and analysis, recruitment and training, and even Operation Torch, which saw Ralph Bunche, a professor and expert in North African History, involved in this effort to help the British secure the area. Once the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was created and got off the ground, there are plenty of spy antics to discuss! Mini biographies of figures like Julia Child, movie director John Ford, and architect Eero Saarinen, as well as lesser known but just as impressive people, paint a picture of the depth and breadth of US intelligence during the War and give glimpses of many of the investigations and missions.

Good Points

Readers unfamiliar with initiatives like cracking the Enigma Code might be enticed to pick up further books like Sepetys and Sheinkein's fictional The Bletchley Riddle or Barone's nonfiction Unbreakable: The Spies Who Cracked the Nazis' Secret Code (which is mentioned in the afterword!). There's more information about the storied and fascinating Virginia Hall (who has been highlighted in Purnell's Agent Most Wanted: The Never-Before-Told Story of the Most Dangerous Spy of World War II and Friddell's The Mysterious Virginia Hall: World War II's Most Dangerous Spy), but other women spies who aided the war effort are also included. Missions behind enemy lines are detailed, as well as propaganda and my very favorite-- research and development. It's intriguing to read about how equipment like miniature cameras and hidden guns were invented and used!

D-Day is portrayed as the ultimate "con", the culmination of the efforts of so many. Of course, after the war there was less need for concentrated espionage, and the OSS was shut down. It didn't end so much as evolve, and many people who played a role in the OSS were present when the Central Intelligence Agency was created.

The afterword was fascinating. Gibbs has written a number of spy novels, and managed to get invited to the CIA museum, which is only accessible to employees of the organization or their guests. He managed to gather so much information that the Spy School Secret Files is going to be a series! This is a shorter book, and perfect for readers who enjoyed Scholastic Focus titles like Hopkinson's World War II Up Close: They Battled in Blizzards, Race Against Death: The Greatest POW Rescue of World War II, They Saved the Stallions, or titles about spy craft like Spradlin's Close Calls: How Eleven US Presidents Escaped from the Brink of Death or the late Paul Janeczko's The Dark Game or Secret Soldiers: How the U.S. Twenty-Third Special Troops Fooled the Nazis.