The Bletchley Riddle

Lizzie finds Willa’s diary when quickly gathering her and her mother’s things before leaving for Bletchley Park. With the threat of bombings looming, she’s unsure when—if ever—she’ll be able to return. She thus absconds with whatever important items she can carry. In Willa’s closet, Lizzie finds this diary, the first sign of Willa’s secrets. As Lizzie pursues the truth about Willa’s disappearance, the diary offers Lizzie and Jakob clues and allows them to piece together the mystery. They discover that Willa wants her diary back, and the children receive little direction or closure beyond that.

The diary thus symbolizes the lies and uncertainty in the relationship between Willa and her children, and The Burden of Secrets that they all feel as a result—particularly Lizzie, who begins studying the diary long before Jakob. Jakob and Lizzie eagerly investigate Willa’s code, but their frustration, loss, and confusion at the disappearance of their mother can’t be ignored.

The pipe symbolizes Jakob’s complicated relationship with the memory of his father, similar to how Willa’s diary is representative of her dynamic with her children, particularly Lizzie.

Several times in the book,