Books to understand the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, by various authors
The World’s attention turned yet again to the Middle East as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict burst into flame… yet again. If you’re like our ‘Your Car Matters’ staff you’re only vaguely aware, at best, of the reality of the situation. Is there a ‘good guy’ or a ‘bad guy’? Who’s telling the truth about the past, and who’s lying to us about the future? Maybe the only thing to know is that it’s a fractally complex situation that varies depending on which way you look at it, so here are Arab, Israeli, and other points of view…
The Question of Palestine, The United Nations
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: What Everyone Needs to Know, Dov Waxman
“Offers an even-handed and judicious guide to the world’s most intractable dispute. Writing in an engaging, jargon-free Q&A format, Dov Waxman provides clear and concise answers to common questions, from the most basic to the most contentious. Covering the conflict from its nineteenth-century origins to the latest developments of the twenty-first century, this book explains the key events, examines the core issues, and presents the competing claims and narratives of both sides. Readers will learn what the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is all about, how it has evolved over time, and why it continues to defy diplomatic efforts at a resolution.”
The 7 best books to read on Israel’s occupation of Palestine, The New Arab
“Hamas’s 2023 attack on Israel shouldn’t be the beginning of any timeline on Israel’s occupation of Palestine. The New Arab has compiled a list of seven must-read books on Israel’s occupation: from settler-colonialism to decolonization.”
Books to Understand the Israel-Palestine Conflict, Penguin Random House
The Israel-Palestine conflict has found its way into the headlines for various reasons over the last few decades. Often, those reasons are tied to the reignition of tensions or the crumbling of peace talks. Like any conflict of this scale, the decades-long struggle between Israel and Palestine is a complex one. The books listed below should provide some insight into both the conflict itself and the very human toll it inflicts.
5 books to read to understand the Israel-Palestine conflict, Harpers Bazaar
The world has been horrified by the escalating violence across Israel and Palestine. But as the headlines clamour to report from the front lines of various atrocities, it can often be difficult to unpick and understand the painful and knotted context of this crisis. Here, we share five works which aim to elucidate the history of this conflict…
My Promised Land by Ari Shavit
Not since Thomas L. Friedman’s groundbreaking From Beirut to Jerusalem has a book captured the essence and the beating heart of the Middle East as keenly and dynamically as My Promised Land. Facing unprecedented internal and external pressures, Israel today is at a moment of existential crisis. Ari Shavit draws on interviews, historical documents, private diaries, and letters, as well as his own family’s story, illuminating the pivotal moments of the Zionist century to tell a riveting narrative that is larger than the sum of its parts: both personal and national, both deeply human and of profound historical dimension.
