Hello! I am an award-winning author and translator whose work has been praised for its honesty, vulnerability, and the way it challenges our ideas about race and identity. In my writing and coaching, I’m inspired by bringing forgotten stories to light.

Sarah Valentine, PhD

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Book cover and e-book display for 'Decoding the Devil' by Sarah Valentine, featuring a classroom black and white photo with highlighted text about Black women codebreakers and the secret war against Stalin's Bomb.

“Astonishing.”

—The Los Angeles Times

“Shatters the mythology of American intelligence. With relentless research and electric storytelling, Sarah Valentine restores the erased Black cryptologists.”

―Nathalia Holt, Bestselling author of Rise of the Rocket Girls

Decoding the Devil tells the shocking true story of the women working in segregated codebreaking units in the Army’s intelligence agencies during World War II and the Cold War. Learn more.

Winner:

2024 National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar Award

2025 National Archives Foundation Commended Scholar of Women’s History Award

Available now from HarperCollins.

Read an excerpt or find discussion questions here.

Decoding the Devil

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Cover of a memoir titled 'When I Was White' by Sarah Valentine, featuring a blurred image of a girl in a white dress walking on a street, with the book displayed on a tablet and a physical copy behind it.

“A masterful explication on the nature of self and identity.”

―NPR Review

A Stunning and provocative coming-of-age story.

Valentine grew up believing that she was white like the rest of her family, but at 27, she discovered her family’s secret.

Growing up in Pittsburgh, PA, Valentine describes an ordinary childhood in a loving family of Italian and Irish descent.

When I Was White

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