Israel on my Mind

From the Lampert Library

1Israel Meir and ben GurionAs we celebrate the 68th birthday of the State of Israel on May 12, we might ponder why this tiny country, no bigger than our state of New Jersey, can cause so much controversy in so many parts of the world.

Even among Jews, who often in the past have viewed Israel through the lens of “my country right or wrong”,  there is no longer monolithic support for Israel.

Perhaps, Israel has finally in her middle age become a “real” country, rife with the social, economic and political problems that seem to  beset every sovereign nation.  Israel’s first prime minister  David Ben-Gurion said, “We will know we have become a normal country when Jewish thieves and Jewish prostitutes conduct their business in Hebrew.”

Later, Golda Meir, who became prime minster at the age of seventy, mused  in a 1973 interview in Ms Magazine,  “I thought that a Jewish state would be free of the evils afflicting other societies: theft, murder, prostitution…But now we have them all. And that’s a thing that cuts to the heart.”

However, as the Jews of France and the Jews of Yemen well know, Israel is home,”the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in” (Robert Frost, Death of the Hired Man).

For a variety of views, take a look at some of the following books:

Aronson, Unsettled: the problem of loving Israel is a personal look at the complex situation in Israel.

Bird, Crossing Mandelbaum Gate is a memoir of growing up in the Middle East. The  author  has his feet planted in many camps.

Carroll,  Jerusalem, Jerusalem looks at the turmoil that religion brings to this meeting place of three religions

2Israel waltz with bashirDershowitz, The Case for Israel is an attempt at rebuttal of discriminatory criticisms of Israel which hold her to a higher standard than other countries.

Folman, Waltz with Bashir turns the film about the disastrous Israeli invasion of  Lebanon into a graphic novel

Gilbert, Israel presents a comprehensive history of Israel’s first half century by a consummate historian.

Gorenberg, The Accidental Empire, Israel as we know it today and the establishment of the settlements, led to the awakening of the militant Palestinian movement.

3Israel to the end of the landGratch, The Israeli Mind, written by a psychologist, looks at the motivation behind the country’s actions.

Grossman, To the End of the Land is a novel that examine the toll that constant war takes on family and country.

Nathan, The Other Side of Israel,written by a woman who grew up in apartheid South  Africa, compares the situation of the Arab-Israeli minority to life in her native land.

Oren, Six Days of War is the most comprehensive study of that conflict.

Oz, A Tale of Love and Darkness details the author’s youth just before and right after the State of Israel was created.

4israel my promised landPekar, Not the Israel My Parents Promised Me traces the author’s transition from an  unquestioning champion of Israel (he grew up in a staunchly pro-Zionist home)  to a bona fide skeptic of Israel’s policies.

Sebag, Jerusalem looks at the 5000 year history of Jerusalem especially at this not so  peaceful city of peace.

Shavit, My Promised Land is a personal look at the history, government and policies of Israel from the late 19th century concentrating on contemporary Israel.

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One thought on “Israel on my Mind

  1. Thanks for this impressive list, Aileen. I’ve read a couple of the books, but I needed the reminder that I need to read more.

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