The Human Scale

by Lawrence Wright

Lawrence Wright at the height of his powers. Centering around the newfound—and forced—relationship between an American/Palestinian FBI agent and a hardline Israeli cop, working together uneasily to solve the murder of the Israeli police chief in Gaza. Moving, thrilling, with extraordinary scope, it does for Palestine and Israel what Gorky Park did years ago for Russia. In the vein of LeCarré and Graham Greene, this is the rare novel that manages to entertain, educate, and deeply move the reader.

Tony Malik is a half-Irish, half-Arab New York based FBI agent, specializing in money flowing from drug and arms deals. The novel opens in shocking fashion, with Malik seriously injured by a terrorist-planted bomb. During his lengthy recuperative process, his life changes radically. A long-term relationship ends, and his job is on the verge of being taken away from him. During this period he learns more about his roots and becomes interested in his father's past and family - his father came to America years ago from Palestine. He decides to make a trip to his father's homeland to attend the wedding of his niece, whom he has never met. As a result of his plans, he is given a simple assignment by his boss at the FBI, partly to see how well he can still do his job. That simple assignment becomes extremely complicated.

As soon as he arrives in Gaza, the Israeli police chief overseeing the area is murdered. Malik is at first a suspect. Then, due to his superior investigative skills, he is invited into the Israeli investigation, seeking the murderer. At the center of this novel is Malik's relationship with Yossi, the hardline anti-Arab Israeli police officer leading the investigation. They must learn to trust each other because, as they move closer to solving the case, they realize there is no one else they can trust on either side.

Extraordinary three dimensional characters populate this Yossi's daughter, studying in Paris, trying to escape the violence that surrounds her in Israel; Malik's niece, whose wedding and life are shattered by the murder; her fiancé, a peacenik whose existence is complicated by the fact that his cousin is high up in the Hamas command; religious leaders on both sides; corrupt Israeli cops; Palestinians thirsting for violence against Israel; Israelis determined to crush the Palestinians. Lawrence Wright brings a wide and complicated tapestry to life, one that culminates on October 7 with the deadly Hamas attack on Israel. But he has written more than just a thriller, or even just an examination of all these complicated lives. He has written a novel that manages to explore and explain much of the devastating history that encompasses the relationship between Israel and Palestine—and shows it to us in a way that poignantly reveals the tragic human scale that is involved.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Thriller, Middle East, Politics, Israel, Mystery

448 pages, ebook

First published March 11, 2025

About the author

Lawrence Wright is an author, screenwriter, playwright, and staff writer for The New Yorker magazine. He has won a Pulitzer Prize and three National Magazine Awards.

His latest book, The Human Scale , is a sweeping, timely thriller, in which a Palestinian-American FBI agent teams up with a hardline Israeli cop to solve the murder of the Israeli police chief in Gaza. According to The New York Times, “Wright succeeds in this complex, deeply felt work.”

He is the author of 11 nonfiction books. His book about the rise of al-Qaeda, The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 (Knopf, 2006), was published to immediate and widespread acclaim. It has been translated into 25 languages and won numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction. It was made into a series for Hulu in 2018, starring Jeff Daniels, Alec Baldwin, and Tahar Rahim.

Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief (Knopf, 2013) was a New York Times bestseller. Wright and director Alex Gibney turned it into an HBO documentary, which won three Emmys, including best documentary. Wright and Gibney also teamed up to produce another Emmy-winning documentary, for Showtime, about the murder of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi.

In addition to The Human Scale, Wright has three other novels: Noriega: God’s Favorite (Simon and Schuster, 2000) which was made into a Showtime movie starring Bob Hoskins; The End of October (Knopf, 2020), a bestseller about a viral pandemic that came out right at the beginning of COVID; Mr. Texas (Knopf, 2023), which has been optioned as a limited streaming series.

In 2006, Wright premiered his first one-man play, “My Trip to Al-Qaeda,” at The New Yorker Festival, which led to a sold-out six-week run off-Broadway, before traveling to Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. It was made into a documentary film of the same name, directed by Alex Gibney, for HBO.

Before he wrote the novel, Wright wrote and performed a one-man show also called The Human Scale, about the standoff between Israel and Hamas over the abduction of an Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit. The Public Theater in New York produced the play, which ran for a month off-Broadway in 2010, before moving to the Cameri Theater in Tel Aviv. Many of the ideas developed in that play later evolved into the novel of the same name, published 15 years later.

In addition to his one-man productions, Wright has written five other plays that have enjoyed productions around the country, including Camp David, about the Carter, Begin, and Sadat summit in 1978; and Cleo, about the making of the movie Cleopatra.

Wright is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Society of American Historians, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He also serves as the keyboard player in the Austin-based blues band, WhoDo.

Reviews

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tony Malik is an FBI agent visiting Palestine to attend a wedding and to meet relatives from his father’s side of the family. Soon after Malik arrives, an Israeli police chief, who had reached out for FBI assistance, is murdered. Malik and an Israeli cop investigate the murder.

The mystery of the murder is really tangential to the actual point of this book. Malik, as an outsider, serves as a device for introducing the reader to the history of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. He also comes into contact with people from both sides of the conflict, and thus exposes the reader to varying points of view. I found the book interesting, but I might have preferred it as nonfiction.

The author’s frustration with the situation is summed up in the Acknowledgements:

“One cannot hope for an end to the strife without acknowledging the separate histories that each side claims.”

“… whenever a real opportunity for a breakthrough arises it is incinerated by the killers who cling to the fantasy that their enemies can be ethnically cleansed or exterminated.”

“ Until the extremists and ideologues are pushed out of power, the conversation about moving on from the conflict will always be stillborn.”

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

"The Looming Tower," written by Lawrence Wright was one of, if not the favorite book I read in 2006. So when I read the blurb/description about "Human Scale," I was intrigued. I was also worried, as I wasn't sure if I was ready to read a book that culminates in the horrific war of terroristic events started by Ham*s on October 7.

But again, I was intrigued. Much like Nelson DeMille's "Night Fall" that led up to September 11, I trusted the author.

Instead, I found trope after antisemetic trope about Israel "occupying" Palestine. About Israeli settlers destroying "Palestinian land." And yes, I understand and appreciate that there are radicals everywhere, and that if you are too far left or too far right, you end up in the same place.

But how a "detective story?" about an Israeli Police Captain being murdered, being turned into a book about truly crazy, radical, murder-happy Israeli... I don't understand.

The description of the book reads "... (The Human Scale) revolves around the newfound - and forced - relationship between a Palestinian American FBI agent and a hard-line Israeli cop... this is the rare novel that manages to entertain, educate and deeply move the reader."

I reviewed the letter written by the publisher at Knopf, which in part reads: "The book is going to be controversial because it presents a three-dimensional side to so many points of view. It humanizes conflict in ways very few novels have managed to do."

If Lawrence Wright was truly trying to show "all-sides" of the conflict, I do not think he achieved this. I wanted to put the book down numerous times, because I found the tropes appalling. While there were numerous Palestinian characters that were written as warm, caring, family-loving, cultural-loving people, there truly was only one Israeli who was captured that way (Yossi's daughter, Sara.)

I may be harsh. And yes, the book will be controversial. But I cannot and will not recommend it. And that's a shame, because we need books "like" this - showing Palestinian and Israeli views... just not to a scale like this.

Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for letting me read this early. I truly appreciate it. Reading this book stirred up passions and shook me - and that's a wonderful thing for a book to do. Wright 100% knows how to capture a story and this will not stop me from reading other books by him. But I think this book will do more harm than opening eyes to the horrors of the conflict.

[Bruce Katz · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very uneven book. Part of it is a serviceable story of a badly wounded Palestinian-American FBI agent becoming embroiled in Israeli-Palestinian politics and culture. It works well enough, particularly in showing how tragically complicated the situation is. The other part involves rather lengthy expository digressions into the (yes, very complicated) history of the conflict. To be sure, these digressions are very informative but the effect, for me, was a book that was neither truly a novel nor an analysis of the subject.

Others may give it a higher rating because they did learn a lot, or because they thought the story gave a human dimension to the conflict, or because neither side was fully Good or fully Bad. I can respect such a response. But for me, it seemed an awkwardly designed bird that couldn't take flight.

[Shereadbookblog · Rating 5 out of 5]

After recovering from injuries received from a bomb and still dealing with memory issues, FBI agent Tony Malik decides to explore his paternal Palestinian roots by attending a family wedding in Gaza. While there, the chief of police is beheaded and Tony becomes a prime suspect. Once cleared, he teams up with an Israeli police inspector to investigate the murder.

Wow! What an excellent book, well written by Pulitzer Prize winning author, Lawrence Wright. More than just a mystery/thriller, Wright delves into the historical roots of both the Arabs and Israelis and their conflict, with the archival and mythical flowing seamlessly back and forth with the contemporary plot. The story follows characters on both sides, exploring their backgrounds and experiences, culminating in the October 6, 2023 attack in Israel.

Engrossing and informative, I learned much of the historical perspective of both the Arabs and the Israelis. Unfortunately, it left me with the feeling that there will never be justice, peace, or the resolution of this conflict. Despite many peace seeking people on both sides, the hatred and the atrocities that have been inflicted do not seem that they can be overcome.

This is a very worthwhile read.

Thanks to #NetGalley and @AAKnopf for the DRC.

[Ula Tardigrade · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have the utmost respect for Lawrence Wright's journalism, and I have loved his non-fiction works, but this novel left me disappointed.

When I started reading it, I was hoping that he had done to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict what Don Winslow has masterfully achieved regarding the US-Mexican so-called war on drugs. On the surface, there are many similarities between "The Human Scale" and the "Power of the Dog" trilogy: a scarred, deeply conflicted main character; a panoramic view of a very complicated geopolitical situation; the interweaving of fact and fast-paced narrative fiction. Unfortunately, the effect is so heavy-handed that I found myself constantly gritting my teeth. While trying to provide a glimpse of the eponymous human scale of the conflict, he made all the protagonists give loaded political speeches, embodying different points of view. It was excruciating for me.

So, if you want to know more about the Middle East and what led to the October 7, 2023 attack and the brutal war that followed, you will certainly learn a lot from this book. But if you are looking for great literature that makes you understand a piece of modern history while keeping you deeply involved in the fate of fictional characters, choose Don Winslow novels.

Thanks to the publisher, Knopf, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

[Don Healy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every once in a while, I encounter a historical fiction book that isn’t just well written, but so engrossing and true to life, it just stops me in my tracks. I’ll be thinking about The Human Scale for a long time To quote Geraldine Brooks, this novel is “lacerating.” Wright tells the stories of the Palestinians and Israelis so clearly, it’s hard to not feel empathy and horror for both. He also uses the first person narrative of a second generation Palestinian-American FBI agent with memory problems from being badly wounded in a suitcase bomb explosion, as the reader’s information source. So, someone who can’t remember goes to a land where no one can forget, or forgive anything.
If you want to better understand the Palestinian - Israeli conflict and its never ending cycle of revenge, wrapped up in a murder mystery, this is your book.

[Sam · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have never given a one-star review. The novel offers the exaggeration and glorification of true and ongoing human tragedy. It doesn't matter if the author's politics are similar from mine or not. That's ugly and leaves me with a awful taste.

Wright doesn't get to have it both ways. He doesn't get to provide fact-based reporting about this moment and give the reader a thriller and a love story to make a buck. It's yet another cruelty to the thousands dead in the last 546 days and those still being tortured in captivity.

The book also goes on way too long. The partisan, self-righteous narrator voice takes from the character development and the narrative. That was enough to make me feel that the novel is OK but not great.

But it's the dramatized, exaggerated, and fictional depiction of 10/7 that demands a one-star review.

Wright claims in his acknowledgements that he wrote from a place of both anger and compassion. I hear only anger.

[Heather Sneyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Until the extremists and ideologues are pushed out of power, the conversation about moving on from the conflict will always be stillborn.”
I enjoyed this read, but it also disturbed me..
Even though it’s a work of fiction…. It really opened my eyes to the different perspectives of those that are central to the conflict..

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t speak publicly about the Israel/Palestine conflict because it’s so utterly complicated and heartbreaking on all levels and because I personally don’t feel educated enough to do so. (I do highly respect all who are educated and do speak up.) I will say this novel touches on a lot of the long-term issues among the people in this region. I learned a lot through these characters, and I hope others will read this book for greater understanding. This book is excellent!

[Tamara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted so badly to read something that would also offer me insight into a different perspective on the situation in the Middle East as an American Jew. I began this book with a very open mind, hoping to gain some deeper understanding about the conflict between Israel, the Palestinians and the war in Gaza. After reading this book, all I feel is a deep sense of disappointment in a Pulitzer Prize winning author who I assumed would feel a sense of responsibility to portray the situation with much more balance than that with which it was ultimately done. I walked away feeling it was incredibly slanted, constantly asking the reader to empathize with the Palestinian cause but with very little explanation or a sense of empathy for the constant fear of terrorism that Jewish Israelis face daily, and how there cannot be peace when a group of people are taught to hate the other, and destroy the other as part of its movement and culture. Even in his description of the events of October 7, the author still describes Hamas‘s invasion of kibbutzim as “breaking out of a cage.” In a moment that caused the most suffering for Jewish people since the holocaust he still manages to justify the actions of a terrorist organization. While the story, the plot, was certainly captivating (for example, it was important to also read about how extremist settlers play an integral role in the ongoing conflict) it was hard not to constantly be weighed down by the one-sided nature of the narrative. Towards the end of the novel, he goes so far as to comment on the way that there is collective punishment towards the Palestinians, but he never does the same for the Jewish people and it’s exactly what Jews globally are facing today as a result. I really expected more from this author and I’m sad that I can’t recommend this book as a balance view. It could have been an excellent piece of historical fiction.

[Lilisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The setting is the West Bank with its complex and complicated history, unending land and religious strife between Israelis and Palestinians, and human reality of survival and corruption. This is the scene into which American FBI agent Tony Malik, nursing his own personal and professional challenges and whose father was Palestinian, decides to visit his ancestral homeland and attend a cousin’s wedding. He’s asked to undertake a simple FBI assignment since he’s going to be there. Then the Israeli police chief is murdered and he is a suspect. There is so much to parse and understand about the complicated history, politics, relationships, and most importantly, the hardship, struggles and hopelessness, as well as drive and motivation of both Palestinians and Israelis living in close proximity, yet worlds apart. The author does a good job with the setting, history, major characters, and storyline. There was a significant amount of history, information, and multiple characters which sometimes felt like the author had created too large a scope. Overall, this was definitely a good read with a great sense of place and time. Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

[Mary Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a murder mystery wrapped in an extensive history of the war on the West Bank. If you’re unsure of what’s going on there and what led to the violence, this book goes into great detail. In the end, the extreme violence and general hopelessness overshadow the story. It’s trite to say this book is depressing. But don’t go into it thinking it’s a traditional mystery. And don’t get attached to ANY of the characters.

[beyondzero · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.8

[Wendi Flint Rank (WendiReviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This well written book about the ongoing tension between Israelis & Palestinian
people leading up to the Hamas invasion of 2023 is very good ~ As the last
person you would think would read this truly educational ~ fictional story, I am
embarrassed by my abject lack of knowledge. Even visiting the region leaves me
grateful to have read this book. The brilliant way the Author integrated the FBI
and the local Police, the loving families who find their loved ones murdered and
fear for their beloved children…while it’s too much, we’re each responsible for
becoming and remaining aware of the the issues that plague these countries.
I highly recommend this book to everyone, and it will be on my list to share with
everyone with whom I share books.
My thanks to Knopf Publishing via NetGalley for the download copy
of this book for review purposes.

[Pamela · Rating 1 out of 5]

No editor on duty!

I've read a quarter of the text and am still astonished at how poorly this book is written and edited. Guess I'm done.

Many unfound errors, sentences that make no sense and the continuity of the plot is amaturous.
I suspect Wright wrote a draft screenplay, let someone fill in dialogue and descriptive text and no one at Knopf cared to use a genuine novelist to write the book. Example: "he was tired but too hungry to eat. " Wtf??

I've been merchandising books for 50 years and this is an example of how far the industry has fallen. A non fiction publication would never be this carelessly produced. An embarrassment for this publisher.

[Evelyn Petschek · Rating 3 out of 5]

A struggle to finish for me. Well-written as one would expect from the author. But when a reporter writes a fictional thriller set in the midst of a current and on-going crisis, it gets muddled and is difficult to really sort fact from fiction. Okay audio narration.

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m still processing this story, but I will say that it helped me understand the origins of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and presented both sides in a work of fiction.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audio reviewed for Booklist here.

[Dan Weinstock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably the most important book I’ll read all year. Lawrence Wright is a master of his craft and a voice that deserves to not only be heard, but remembered after he’s gone. I’m proud to live in the same city as him.

[Celeste · Rating 4 out of 5]

So well done

[Rob1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

No real subtlety and the characters don't seem real as much of the dialogue and inner monologue are speeches meant to deliver a message. Stories from characters in this setting need to be told to better understand the conflict but ultimately this was a missed opportunity.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly compelling deep dive into the Israeli Palestinian conflict from the perspectives of very believable and sympathetic protagonists. Some of the wrap up is a bit contrived but still powerful.

[Madison Shelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crime thriller wrapped in the history of Israel/Palestine and the October 7 Attack. Enjoyed this one, although the Israel/Palestine history is obviously heavy and makes you think.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A 5-star insight into the Israel/Palestinian conflict but 3 stars for the slow-paced mystery. I became a little weary with the story line but appreciate the author’s dive into the politics and culture the of Hebron area.

[Allison Meakem · Rating 5 out of 5]

New Yorker staff writer Lawrence Wright is no stranger to political storytelling. The author of more than a dozen books, Wright won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for The Looming Tower, which is widely regarded as the definitive account of events leading up to the 9/11 attacks. Wright’s latest work, The Human Scale, is a rare foray into fiction.

The Human Scale begins in Jordan in 2022, when Palestinian American FBI agent Anthony Malik barely survives the detonation of a Hamas bomb discovered at Amman’s Queen Alia International Airport. Months later, he returns home to New York City traumatized and adrift. With Malik’s future at the FBI uncertain, he travels to the occupied West Bank in September 2023 to attend his cousin’s wedding in Hebron... [[READ THE REST IN FP: https://foreignpolicy.com/2025/03/07/...]]

[Jennifer Colucci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lawrence Wright is a fantastic non-fiction author and with this novel you can see the work he put in. Wright sets this novel in Palestine/Israel with characters from both nationalities. In the telling of his story he gives a excellent background on the conflict in the middle east, with a fairly objective view. ( I think he does favor one country more, but I'll leave that guess up to the reader). Over the course of this book we follow a murder case where there are suspects from all angles. One by one we piece together who did what and why. Overall I will give this 4 stars for a great book that was well researched. My only complaint is that Wright likes to throw in a romance and honestly I don't think he writes romance very well. But otherwise pick up this book if you want a new kind of mystery and want to learn a bit about the world as well.
4 stars.
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest reivew.

[Silver Screen Videos · Rating 3 out of 5]

The conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Arabs warrants a careful analysis in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, and the Israeli retaliation. That conflict also could easily form the backdrop for a gripping political thriller. Noted author and journalist Lawrence Wright would appear to have the credentials to combine both concepts in the same book. His “The Looming Tower,” a detailed study of the attack on the World Trade Center, won the Pulitzer Prize. As a novelist, his fictional pandemic thriller, “The End of October,” released in April 2020, was hailed for its research and prescience and became a bestseller. He now adopts that same approach to the Israel/Palestine conflict in “The Human Scale.” Unfortunately, the result isn’t that thrilling and will frustrate fact-seekers.

“The Human Scale” takes place in late September and early October, 2023, with each chapter heading denoting its exact date. It’s no spoiler to reveal that the novel’s timeline is no coincidence and that the October 7 attack figures into the storyline. However, the bulk of the story takes place in Hebron, a city of great religious and historical significance in the West Bank of Palestine. Criminal investigations in Hebron are divided between Israeli and Palestinian entities, as the author describes at greater length. About two weeks before the Hamas attack, the Israeli police chief of Hebron was brutally murdered and decapitated. Most people suspect terrorism, but Yossi Ben-Gal, the veteran detective who winds up in charge of the investigation, is doubtful, in part because no one takes credit for the crime.

As Yossi investigates, he gains a de facto partner in Tony Malik, a half-Arab FBI agent in Hebron, who is attending a family wedding. Tony talked to the chief shortly before his death and became an immediate suspect. After convincing Yossi of his bona fides, Tony winds up assisting the Israeli in the investigation. Complicating matters (and arousing more suspicion against himself) is the fact that Tony was severely injured and lost an eye when a terrorist bomb went off in New York a year earlier. As a result, Tony experiences occasional memory loss and doesn’t recall his conversations with the chief.

As suggested by this plot capsule, “The Human Scale” has the makings of a taut, mismatched cop police thriller in an exotic setting. Indeed, in reading the book, I got the impression that the story may have originated as a screenplay treatment. However, the author had grander ideas in mind and decided to incorporate as much political and historical material as possible about the region and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As a result, the central storyline expanded into an unwieldy and often suspense-killing 500 pages.

Much of the material inserted by the author is interesting or educational by itself. Some aspects, such as a discussion of the internal politics of the division of police responsibilities in Hebron, are necessary to fully understand the plot. Other excerpts would make good standalone articles in various journals. Unfortunately, they also divert the reader’s attention from the central storyline and dispel suspense. For example, at one point, an Israeli cop notes Malik’s eyepatch and resemblance to Moshe Dayan. The author could have given a one-paragraph explanation of the comment by briefly noting who Moshe Dayan was and his trademark eyepatch. Instead, the author inserts an entire chapter titled “Moshe Dayan” after the comment. That chapter is a brief biography of Moshe Dayan and a good introduction for those unfamiliar with the man. It also has no connection to the author’s central narrative. Readers may be confused when the author resumes the central plot.

Besides inserting material providing a factual history of the Palestinian conflict at various disjointed places in “The Human Scale.” the author also has multiple characters engaging in lengthy monologues describing their views. Many thrillers allow the villains to explain their motivation, and those speeches can be some of the more entertaining sections of a book. However, a good thriller author knows how to limit these monologues to keep the story from resembling a Dr. Evil movie. The supporting characters in “The Human Scale” include both Israeli and Arab moderates and hardliners, all of whom the author gives the floor to explain their reasoning at length. Again, this is material that would make for an interesting non-fiction study of the region. However, in a thriller, these monologues become tiresome.

“The Human Scale” reads like a screenplay for a political thriller that wound up being combined with the first draft of a study of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict leading to the Hamas attack. As such, it’s a disappointment on both counts. Worse, this mashup squanders the talents of a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, who is uniquely positioned to report on the growing conflict. This book was obviously written in response to the Hamas attack. The author must have recognized the impact a well-written historical analysis would have had, yet he opted for the vehicle of a conventional thriller. As such, the story has a few interesting twists, but nothing readers haven’t seen many times before, with the extraneous material serving as a distraction. The result is a very ordinary book from an extraordinary talent.

NOTE: The publisher graciously provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley. However, the decision to review the book and the contents of this review are entirely my own.

[Thrillers R Us · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reworking the gruff, stoic, but always marvelous Toshiro Mifune as YOJIMBO into something more palatable for western audiences, Sergio Leone managed to upset traditional genre lovers with a Spaghetti flavor, albeit without sauce. Delivering Clint Eastwood in his first starring vehicle, A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS followed in '64 much of what YOJIMBO established three years earlier. A man with no name arrives in a town, hiring out his services to both warring factions who're looking to gain control, while playing the opponents against each other. Throwing A FISTFUL OF SHEKELS onto THE HUMAN SCALE, an FBI agent on the fringe arrives in Hebron, center mass of a conflict that's been burning forever, two societies that draw meaning from death. A place where the cause matters more than life, and death is always awaiting a careless move. Can one American with a DEATH WISH and ties to both sides help solve a brutal murder and get payback? But this isn't a crime. Not like Agatha Christie. This is Israel. It's terror.

Out in the pouring rain of animosity without an umbrella, one Tony Malik, American, half-breed and the best of the best in the anti-terror squad in the NYC FBI Field Office, should be taking it easy to recoup from a huge bomb blast in Jordan. Malik is familiar with the Middle East, though never Palestine or Israel, and 'easy' is not in his vocabulary. While enjoying plausible deniability via a cousin's wedding, Malik is armed with a name and an eye for seeing what's missing. It remains to be seen whether that is enough in a region drowning in drugs and black-market weapons. Knocking heads with Mossad, Shabak, politicians, the IDF, terrorists, and a small hicktown police department in the middle of an ancient strife, the realities of criminal investigations loom large; evidence grows cold, people disappear, memories fade. After all, occupied land is a place where force is valued and hesitation can be fatal. THE HUMAN SCALE basically tries to find a path from one piece of data to another and hopes to eventually uncover a pattern. Or perhaps not, as nothing defeats detecting like the randomness of human nature. And in the blood and sand of the Middle East, there's no rhyme or reason, only bullets, bombs, and baklava.

Chomping through much of the mess between Israel and Palestinians and trouble in the Middle East, including the Six Day War, PLO, Arafat, Oslo Peace Accord and Bibi Netanyahu, THE HUMAN SCALE is somewhere between love letter to Israel and condemnation of Israeli policies in the modern world. Nonetheless, THE HUMAN SCALE is a balanced account of the eternal rivalries of Arabs and Jews, Israelis and Palestinians, Hamas and PLO; the headache and back and forth between two tribes making claim to an ancient land and fighting it out. Righting wrongs, fighting fire with fire. Hate with hate. Violence with violence. It is draining and difficult to keep at it, akin to watching worrisome news broadcasts all day long. Every hour, every minute. Thus, THE HUMAN SCALE is burning up valuable real estate, the first two-thirds being background, trudging along, rehashing history, exploring current events and figuring out the future. The reader is torn, part wants to leave this thing behind as it is and never return. The other: dive in deeper. Thence, THE HUMAN SCALE gets hella interesting when it comes to figuring out the murder mystery. Not quaint at all, THE HUMAN SCALE broadly proclaims that the peace process is a circular route leading nowhere, that whenever peace is near, a spoiler will arise, and that the best thing about the Middle East is the food. Partially responsible for penning 1998's THE SIEGE, the author impresses through THE HUMAN SCALE that a man without friends is a man in trouble, the FBI exploits FACEBOOK as an investigative tool, and that the Middle East Golden Rule is to do unto others before other do unto you. Asking what is the worth of one human life and whether the holy land will always be the field of battle in the name of God, THE HUMAN SCALE is definitely food for thought. As such, THE HUMAN SCALE deeply immerses the reader in the quicksand of ethnic hatred, a book charged with smoldering electricity, ready to hurl a lighting bolt. Mind the voltage and try to catch this one.























































































































Thank you Lawrence Wright, NetGalley, Penguin Random House, Knopf for the early look.

[Carole Barker · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a land torn apart by ideology can either side live without enemies?

FBI agent Tony Malik is the sole survivor of a bomb explosion in Jordan that has left him with multiple injuries: one functional eye and a traumatic brain injury that has left him with inconsistent memory are the ones that are most threatening his ability to return to his job. His superiors would just as soon he opt for early retirement with full disability benefits, but Tony desperately wants to stay on and is downplaying the extent of his problems. His girlfriend has left him, he has no immediate family left...the job is what he thinks will provide his motivation to go on. With plenty of time on his hands while decisions about his future are being made, Tony starts looking into his late father's history (about which he knows little and has never explored) and discovers that not only is his father's twin brother still alive back in Hebron, he has a daughter about to marry. Tony decides to contact the family he has never met and travel to the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territory to attend the wedding. When he visits his boss in an attempt to signal his return to work the response is tepid, but when he mentions his plan to visit Gaza his boss asks him to do the agency an unofficial favor (which, he hints, could help Tony's prospects at the FBI). A local police chief there has reached out to the FBI with concerns, and Tony is tasked with making contact with the man. Shortly after Tony does so, the police chief is brutally murdered and Tony finds himself caught up in the aftermath of the killing. On top of the ever-present tensions between the Israeli settlers looking to lay claim to more land for their people and the Arabs who have long lived there, there is a powerful rabbi who believes that the entirety of the West Bank (and beyond) belongs to the Jewish people and should be purged of all Arabs, the rivalry over control which exists between the local police, the IDF, Shin Bet and the Palestinian police, and the opposing views amongst the citizens of what Israel's future should hold. Tony and Yossi, the man who is now in charge of the local police, reluctantly join forces to search for the chief's killer as the calendar approaches what will prove to be a fateful date....October 7, 2023.
The Human Scale is both an old school thriller and a fascinating look at the cultural divide that exists as it has existed for decades between the Israeli and Palestinian people. The horrific events of October 7 did not unfold in a vacuum, and those interested in learning more about the conditions that led up to that terrible day will find much to explore here. Author Lawrence Wright, who as a journalist has covered the Middle East, has created a rich assortment of well-developed characters who together tell the story of a region that has been dominated by much animosity and conflict for generations. The flow of the story is at times dragged down by the sheer amount of factual data that in interwoven with the plot, but at the same time those facts add much to the quality of the read. There are weighty themes within these pages as well as relatively even-handed historical analysis; it is by no means an escapist thriller, and readers' knowledge of what will transpire on October 7 contributes to the emotional impact as the story heads towards that dark day. Readers of authors like Don DeLillo, Daniel Silva and John Le Carré will find much to like with this novel, as did I. My thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for allowing me early access to this complex and informative saga in exchange for my honest review.

[Mal Warwick · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gripping murder mystery set in the West Bank town of Hebron

Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright is equally adept at both fiction and nonfiction, for which he won the prize. He has explored the history of Al Qaeda and 9/11, the so-called “Church” of Scientology, and other themes in 11 deeply researched factual accounts published from 1979 to 2021. Later (2000-25), he has written four novels, plumbing the dynamics of a pandemic, the corruption in Texas politics, and Panama under dictator Manuel Noriega. Now comes The Human Scale, a searing examination of Israeli-Palestinian relations in the days leading up to Hamas’s attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. It’s a West Bank murder mystery, and a brilliant one. But the novel transcends the genre with its penetrating dive into the mindset of two irreconcilable peoples.

A half-Palestinian FBI agent and a ruthless Israeli hardliner investigate

The novel opens explosively with the detonation of a car bomb that murders several members of an FBI team operating in Jordan. One Special Agent Tony Malik survives the event, but he spends months recuperating and regaining most of his cognitive functions. Still ailing, the half-Palestinian, half-Irish agent opts to travel for the first time to Palestine to attend a niece’s wedding and see the village where his father grew up.

There, in Hebron, the region is roiled when the liberal police chief of the city turns up dead, with his head missing. But neither Hamas nor any other Arab extremist group claims responsibility. Gradually, Tony enters into an on-again, off-again collaboration with Yossi ben Gal, the most senior police investigator in Hebron. Together, the two repeatedly risk their lives to follow the meager trail of clues that may lead them to identify the murderers.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict viewed up close

It quickly becomes clear that neither Tony nor Yossi can trust anyone in positions of power or influence. Somehow, corruption lies at the heart of the case, and powerful people are involved. Thus, singly and together, the two defy senior police officials and the Israeli intelligence establishment, all of whom attempt to pin the murder on the usual Palestinian suspects. And the stakes for Tony quickly rise when both his niece and her fiancé are among them.

This baffling investigation leads Tony and Yossi into conflict with all the contending forces in the West Bank. Hamas. Yossi’s fellow police officers. The Israeli Security Agency (Shin Bet or Shabak). And the fanatical Jewish settlers pushing the boundaries of their settlement in Hebron into the lands owned by Tony’s family. Through Tony’s and Yossi’s eyes, we gain insight into the wide range of views in both the Arab and the Jewish communities. And we witness the outbreak of violence between stone-throwing Palestinian teenagers and the homicidal settlers intent on genocide. All the ugliness of the Arab-Israeli conflict rises into the open in this deeply troubling novel.

About the author

Lawrence Wright won the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction and numerous other awards for his 2006 book on 9/11, The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11. He has also written 10 other nonfiction books and four novels. Wright has been a staff writer for The New Yorker since 1992 and is also a fellow at the Center for Law and Security at the New York University School of Law. He was born in 1947 in Oklahoma City and raised in Texas. Wright graduated from Tulane University and earned a master’s degree in applied linguistics from the American University in Cairo. He and his wife live today in Austin.