Reclaiming Israel's History: Roots, Rights, and the Struggle for Peace

by David Brog

No history is so disputed as the history of Israel. Some see Israel's creation as a dramatic act of justice for the Jewish people. Others insist that it was a crime against Palestine's Arabs.

Author David Brog untangles the facts from the myths to reveal the truth about the Arab-Israeli conflict. In Reclaiming Israel's History you'll learn how the Jewish people have maintained a continual presence in the Land of Israel for over 3,000 years—despite centuries of Roman, Byzantine, and Muslim persecution; how the Romans invented the word "Palestine" as a way to sever the connection between the Jewish people and their land (and how subsequent conquerors doubled down on this strategy); how modern Jewish immigration to Palestine did not displace Arabs but instead sparked an Arab population boom; and the largely untold story of how the leader of Palestine's Arabs collaborated with the Nazis to murder Jews in Europe before they could reach their ancestral homeland. You'll also learn why most of Palestine's Arabs never identified themselves as "Palestinians" until after the 1967 War; the extraordinary lengths to which Israel's military goes to protect Palestinian civilians (and the high price Israel's soldiers pay for this morality), and how the Palestinians have on separate occasions rejected Israel's offers of a Palestinian state in virtually all of the West Bank and Gaza.

Brog frankly admits to Israel's "sins both large and small," but notes that in any fair-minded analysis these have been far out- weighed by Israel's commitment to Western values, including freedom, democracy, and human rights. Honest, provocative, and timely, especially given rising anti-Semitism and the aggressive delegitimization of Israel, David Brog's Reclaiming Israel's History is the book for every reader who wants to understand what is really happening in the Middle East.

Genres: History, Israel, Nonfiction, Middle East, Politics, Audiobook, Jewish

288 pages, Hardcover

Published March 20, 2017

Reviews

[Laila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dennis Prager was right about this book. It's offers clarity and depths to understand Israel's history from her roots, rights and the struggle for peace.
This book is for the truth seekers who want to understand Arab-Israeli conflicts. I highly recommend this book for those who identified themselves as Palestinian, the self-hating Jews and the international NGOs personnel, who so set to catch a Jew "sinning" against the Palestinians on daily basis. The international community including the UN, the EU should get off from their high horses and for once in their life time to humbly admit how wrong they were and for so long in their concerted efforts in demonizing Israel. They too have blood in their hands for the many dead, innocent Jews since 1947.
If the international community is sincere about peace in the Middle East then they should stop being the enablers for terrorism, propaganda and boycotts against Israel, and they should stop using the brigade of NGOs as their proxies to demonize Israel on the ground. Instead the international community should start to make the Palestinian Authority (and the Palestinian people) accountable for their actions and inaction on eliminating and/or resorting to terrorism against Israelis and for the consistent refusal to five deals to have their own state. This is a grave oversight by the international community with detrimental consequences. In fact, the international community fails time and time again to condemn the Palestinians in its rhetoric and deeds of their goal to a complete annihilation of Israel as a Jewish state in order to have their own state. Why?
It's hard to argue with the facts in this book that the Arab-Palestinians statelessness was nothing more than their own doing, a self-inflicting injury, perpetuate in nature that so pathological yet they have the audacity to blame it on Israel; and the majority of the international community fell for it! I think that's the saddest thing of all.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative book about Israeli - Palestinian conflict. Surprisingly it wasn't too complicated to listen to. Would recommend to those that are interested in this subject.

[Brian Fiedler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The next time you see an Academic sporting a Palestinian keffiyeh and bloviating at a BDS rally, I recommend you give this book to that person with this offer: "Underline every historical inaccuracy in this book and pencil in the correction, and I will donate a dollar to your BDS organization. Then return the book to me."

Your option of what to do with the book after it is returned to you. Be creative.

I would have appreciated some maps in the book.

Haley 2020

[BJ Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can't argue with facts.

This is true, but all too often in the modern discourse of the Palestinian/Israeli discourse, facts are completely ignored. Brog does his best to offer a corrective to this. After a brief look at the historical claim to the Israeli right to live in their own land, he goes into an in-depth look at the much more recent past. One thing he points out, again and again, is how the Palestinians have again and again rejected any form of a two-state solution. Many, many times over the past 80+ years, the Jews have been more than willing to live side by side with their Arab neighbors (the local Arabs did not ever consider themselves Palestinians until the late '60s and early '70s). Five different times, the Arab or Palestinian leadership has rejected ever more generous offers of a two-state solution yet not once did they make any form of a counter offer. The only solution the Palestinians will accept is to see the Jewish people completely driven from the land. There never will be peace until there are legitimate parties on both sides are willing to negotiate towards a just peace. Time and again the Jews have demonstrated a willingness to do so. Time and again, they have been met by nothing but violence. Brog goes into deep detail using meticulous notes and quotes to demonstrate how this is true. I would strongly recommend this book as an injection of fact to counter the mockery of truth so often found in modern reporting on the issue.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read quite a few books about Israel and the Jewish people including Jewish history in various countries, the World War II Holocaust, and the establishment and struggles of the newly formed country of Israel. Reclaiming Israel's History: Roots, Rights, and the Struggle for Peace by David Brog recaps much of that history but goes way beyond and back over more than the 3000 years of the Jewish connection to what has become today's Israel; sort of a broad overview with a fair amount of detail, if that makes any sense. The author tackles a number of myths and topics of controversy including whether or not the founding of Israel was and act of justice for the persecuted Jewish people or a crime against the Arab inhabitants; how the Jews maintained a connection with the land for over 3000 years while under various occupiers; how the impact of Jewish immigration did not displace Arabs and rather resulted in a population explosion among the Arabs; how the Arab leadership conspired with the Nazis to exterminate Jews in Europe to prevent their immigration; the fact that Arabs did not identify themselves as Palestinians until after the 1967 War. He also shares the back stories about how Israelis consistently accepted proposed peace agreements, the exact opposite of the Palestinian rejection of anything except killing or chasing the Jews out of Israel. Very well written and informative for anyone who wants to get a factual understanding of what's driving the intrigue between the Arabs and Israelis in the Middle East.

[Jan Kraft · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's hard to argue with the truth

If you're a history buff, and appreciate a fair and honest review of the Jewish homeland, this is the book for you. If you want to understand what Israel is up against, this is the book for you. If you love God and want to understand his prophesy being fulfilled in our lifetime, this is the book for you.

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This is one of the best nonfiction books I’ve ever read. He explains the Arab-Israeli conflict clearly with just the right amount of detail (only 200 pages). I couldn’t put this book down. Anyone who’s ever wondered what is going on in Israel (and why there isn’t a nation called Palestine) should read this book.

Brog points out facts that are twisted (or ignored, or lied about) by mainstream media and academia today:
--the Jewish people have maintained a continual presence in the Land of Israel for over 3,000 years (and in 1840, Jews were the largest religious community in Jerusalem)
--modern Jewish immigration to Palestine did not replace Arabs but instead sparked an Arab population boom ,
--the leader of Palestine’s Arabs (the Mufti) from the 1920’s to 1960’s collaborated with the Nazis to murder Jews in Europe before they could reach their ancestral homeland,
--Palestinians have rejected the offer of a Palestinian state FIVE TIMES: in 1937, 1947, 1967, 2000 and 2008. The Jews accepted each of these partition plans, even when it wasn’t a good deal for them (e.g. in 1937, Jews were only offered 20% of Palestine).
--Palestinians aren’t the only stateless group in the world; there are over 350 stateless nations who are actively seeking their independence (many groups are much larger than the Palestinians and have never been offered a state of their own; why so much outrage for the Palestinians when others have it much worse?)
--in contrast to the Arab terrorists’ tactics, Israel’s military goes to great lengths to protect Palestinian civilians; Israeli soldiers pay a high price for this morality.

Quotes:
“There is no logical explanation for the vast gap in attention paid to these two stateless Arab peoples, the Palestinians and the Arabistanis… (The 1948 War), produced approximately seven hundred thousand Arab refugees...The fact is that the large majority of these Palestinian refugees chose to flee a war that their leaders started and their Arab neighbors escalated...The direct link between Arab aggression and Arab dislocation should at least temper the outrage of those seeking to blame this suffering in Israel.” -pp. xv-xvi
Most refugees don’t choose to remain refugees for 50+ years: “The fact that these millions of German refugees (forcibly expelled from eastern Europe after WW2, simply for their ethnicity) chose a different path is of enormous significance. It demonstrates that not every people with a grievance must respond with rage. It shows that it’s possible to look forward in hope rather than look back in anger…(e.g. Turkish, Greek, Jewish, Indian, Pakistani refugees)...In fact, this is pretty much what every refugee group in the history of refugees has done, with one notable exception: the Palestinians.” -p. Xxii
“The UN has created a special organization for Palestinian refugees that both defines them differently and cares for them separately from every other refugee population on earth. In so doing, the international community has been a full partner in helping the Palestinian refugees preserve their status and nurture their grievances.” -p. Xxiii
Hmmm.. very interesting: Any other refugee group does not transfer refugee status to their children who are born after fleeing their country, and they are no longer considered a refugee once they become a citizen of another country. But not so with the Palestinians! From the original number of 750,000 refugees in 1948, the UN now counts 5 million! (If they were counted as other refugee groups are counted, there would be 30,000 Palestinian refugees.)

“Let’s be clear. It is not anti-Semitic to criticize Israel...But it is anti-Semitic to criticize ONLY Israel. Those who ignore the sins of all other nations and are outraged only by Jewish sins- real or imagined- are doing exactly what all anti-Semites have done throughout history. They are singling out Jews for our common human failures. And more often than not, they are exaggerating, if not outright imagining the Jewish transgression.” -p. xxvi

“The Palestinians are the only refugee population from the World War II era to remain frozen in time. They alone remain in camps. They alone have nurtured a culture in which the keys to houses that no longer exist are often more cherished than the lives of their children… A century of Palestinian terror has produced a perverse public relations payoff. Rather than blame the Palestinians for resorting to so violent a tactic, the world’s morally challenged have concluded that a people so especially outraged must have been uniquely wronged. If so many Palestinians are willing to strap bombs on their bodies and blow themselves up, we’re told, then Israel must be guilty of some truly terrible crimes. But Palestinian terror is not a reflection of Israeli misdeeds. It is a mirror held up to the Palestinians themselves.” -p. Xxx
“The Palestinians...have largely refused to de-link their national aspirations from the destruction of Israel. This refusal is the only reason that the Palestinians remain stateless to this very day.” -p. 5
“Israel did not start the 1948 War in an effort to drive out Palestine’s Arabs. Palestine’s Arabs started this war in an effort to destroy the Jewish state… The Arab states did not invade Israel (in 1948) to help the Palestinian refugees. It was the Arab invasion that PRODUCED the Palestinian refugees. Had the Arabs accepted the UN Parition Plan and agreed to the creation of a Jewish state, there would have been a Palestinian state back in 1948. And had the Arabs accepted the partition of Palestine, there would not have been so much as one Palestinian refugee.” -pp. 9, 11
“The conflict between the Arabs and Jews in Palestine persists because one side- the Arab side- has linked their national liberation to the other side’s destruction.” -p. 13
“By the time the modern Zionist movement was founded in 1897, a modern wave of Jewish immigration to Palestine had already been underway for decades. Zionism was not some dramatic Jewish rediscovery of Palestine have two thousand years.” -p. 37
“In the span of one lifetime, Hesseini (leader of Arabs in Palestine) was on Ottoman, a Syrian, a Palestinian, a pan-Arab, a Palestinian once again, and finally a Jordanian. In each case he embraced his new identity with convincing conviction… When the most prominent Palestinian Arab leader is so unclear about his own identity, how exactly were the Israelis supposed to know better?...The modern anti-Israel narrative is built upon an anachronism. The present existence of a Palestinian people is constantly projected back into the past. Then Israel is blamed for failing to recognize and accommodate a nation not yet born.” -p. 58
In the early 1900’s: “Those who claim that Jewish immigration to Palestine displaced Palestine’s Arabs have it exactly backward...The lands the Jews reclaimed and developed supported not only returning Jews, but also far more Arabs than ever before. Arabs streamed into these Jewish areas from other parts of Palestine and from neighboring Arab countries. Once there, they enjoyed a standard of living far higher than any of their neighbors in Palestine or beyond.” -p. 74
Zionist leader Jabotinsky to the British in 1937: “When the Arab claim is confronted with our Jewish demand to be saved, it is like the claims of appetite versus the claims of starvation.” -p. 85
“One of the reasons that Arab nationalism has been so difficult to accommodate is that it has been a moving target. It took decades for this separate Palestinian nationalism to take root. The Arab League and the United Nations did not officially recognize the existence of a Palestinian people until the early 1970s. Before that time, Palestine’s Arabs were an indecisive national customer, trying on, rejecting, and then recalling a series of shifting identities.” -p. 98 (Arabs in Palestine identified as Ottoman, Arab, Syrian, then Jordanian until after their defeat in the 1967 War)
“For Husseini, the Zionist claim to Palestine had launched a zero-sum battle in which every Jewish gain somehow constituted an equivalent Arab loss. The Mufti’s philosophy led him to view Jewish children quite differently than Ben Gurion viewed Arab children. Far from respecting their rights, the Mufti tried to kill Jewish children before they could reach Palestine.” -p. 100 (he met with Hitler and was a big supporter of the Final Solution which aimed to kill all Jews)
A German who helped plan the Final Solution during WW2 later said at his war crimes trial: “Husseini asked Eichmann to send an expert to Jerusalem to help him murder Palestine’s Jews once the war was won.” -p. 117
Many Arabs refrained from participating in the 1920 and 1921 riots and massacres against Jews in Palestine. Many Arabs hid their Jewish neighbors in their homes which saved the Jews’ lives. “The problem with Palestine’s Arab moderates was not that they didn’t exist. The problem was that they didn’t win...For Husseini, there was only one acceptable path: the complete rejection of Jewish rights in Palestine. In vanquishing his political opponents, Husseini typically shunned the arts of persuasion and politics. He preferred murder. Simply put, every leader who emerged as a serious challenger to Husseini’s rule ended up dead...Killing such traitors was an even higher priority than killing Jews…(They) killed over nine hundred of their fellow Arabs who had in some way challenged Husseini’s rule or dissented from his dictates.” -pp. 120, 123
“Palestine’s Arabs started the 1948 War. Their explicit goal was to prevent the UN-authorized Jewish state from ever coming into existence. When the Palestinians proved unable to vanquish the Jews on their own, five Arab nations invaded Israel in an effort to finish the job. The large majority of Arab refugees were individuals who fled this war that their leaders launched and their neighbors escalated… The 1948 War was certainly not the first time that a nation has launched a war of annihilation against its neighbor. But it may well be the first time that the invaders expressed such indignation when their neighbors dared to fight back. Most aggressors throughout most of human history have at least had the decency not to cry ‘victim’ when they lose.’ -pp. 126-7
In 2008: “Hamas intentionally targeted civilians with each of the over seven thousand missiles and mortars they fired at Israel’s population centers. Israel, in sharp contrast, went to exceptional lengths to distinguish between innocent civilians and the Hamas terrorists who tried so hard to blend in with them… Israel tried in vain to stop the aggression through diplomatic appeals and economic sanctions...It was only after these peaceful measures failed- and over seven thousand missiles had been fired into its territory- that Israel decided to respond militarily. It is difficult to imagine any other country waiting so long to perform its fundamental duty to protect its citizens.” -p. 189 (and Israel dropped thousands of leaflets warning civilians to leave before an attack, plus they announced their approach over loudspeakers, giving up their element of surprise in order to save civilians)
“If it takes a man as intelligent as Judge Goldstone so long to understand the enormous challenges facing democracies seeking to defend themselves from terrorists wielding human shields, it should come as no surprise that most people never get that far. Hamas and its fellow terrorists have located the soft underbelly of Western democracies: compassion compounded by ignorance.” -p. 195
“Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel summed it up best. When asked about Palestinian suffering, he acknowledged it. He agreed that Palestinians have every right to be angry. But, he added, they shouldn’t be angry at Israel. The Palestinians should be angry at their grandparents, who turned down the offer of a Palestinian state back in 1947. And- to update Wiesel’s formula- they should also be angry at their parents, who have continued to reject similar Israeli offers down to the present day.” -p. 203
“The large majority of these (Arab) refugees voluntarily fled their homes to escape a war their leaders had launched and escalated...Meanwhile, Palestine’s Jews had nowhere else to go. Their backs to the sea, they stood their ground and fought... But not all Palestinian refugees left voluntarily...Israelis expelled (some) Arabs in an effort to clear hostile villages from their rear as they prepared to confront an Arab onslaught on their borders. The fact that Israel expelled tens of thousands of Palestinian Arabs cannot be denied. But these harsh actions can only be judged in their context. These expulsions were neither outbursts of racial animosity nor a calculated ethnic cleansing. They were simply part of the desperate strategy by which Israel’s leaders hoped to survive an aggression they had not sought and were far from certain they would survive.” -p. 208

Great 5-minute video by this author: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76Nyt...
A one-hour podcast of Brog discussing his book: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyVX0...

[Gay]

Metaxas and Dennis Prager say best book on the Israel/Palestinian issue.

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating primer on how the Palestinian Arab identity came about; and how Arab refusal to allow Jewish immigration into Palestine before WWII forced Nazi Germany to resort to the Final Solution.

[Josh Hornback · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was shocking. To see a history of Israel offering statehood to Palestine, each time offering bigger and bigger chunks only to be rejected each time by tyrants whose only desire is to see the destruction of the Israeli state. To read about the leniency the IDF shows, even going so far to abort missions because of too many Palestinians lives are at risk, this whole book shows evidence that is contrary to the rhetoric and vile antisemitism spewed by left wing pundits and their cronies. A history of a nation that just wants to be left alone but is willing to cut out big chunks of itself just for peace.

[Paul Herriott · Rating 4 out of 5]

This pro-Israel perspective give quite a bit of backing to the legitimacy of Israel and the illegitimacy of the Palestinian cause. I appreciated the attempt to not pull punches on areas where Israel has been wrong, and I think it was very convincing to show the skewed global representation this conflict has been given.

[Diane Schrader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent history

Thorough but engaging history of Israel’s struggle for existence against many foes and a profound disinterest in peace from the Palestinian side.

[Jeff Lacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very worthwhile comprehensive introduction to the Israeli-Palestinian history. Scrupulously cited, clearly written, Brog provides an economic, well organized, and illuminating text.

[Md. Al-Beruni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written and easy to follow book that depicts the Israeli version of their history very clearly. Going through the book a reader is bound to feel sympathetic to the Israeli cause. The book is clearly biased towards Israel and the author did not try to hide it in any way since the purpose of the write up is to put the point of view of the Israelis. In defending Israeli actions throughout the history, the writer has depicted a very convincing version of the Israelis themselves. The current Israeli-Palestinian tension is said to be a making of the Arabs. The Arabs’ intransigence against accepting the Jews as their co-resident and their initial violence and hatred toward the Jewish refugees and settlers are blamed for the existing conflicts in the middle-east. The Israeli army and politicians are, on the other hand, pictured in a place of moral high ground. The Israeli violence towards the Palestinians is justified based on the former’s right to defend itself. Some of these statements are true to some extent, no doubt about that. But the validity of the main premise of the author, that a group of people unified based on a religion has the right to have their own country by occupying a part of another country, is questionable if not downright wrong. That this may be the main instigator that gave rise to the violence that ensued is totally ignored by the writer. There are more than 4,000 religions in the world, just assume if all of the followers think the same! The allegation that, Palestinians, a name older than 2500 years, is a nation too young to have country of their own also seems ludicrous. The preemptive attacks that Israel makes towards other countries – killing Iranian scientists or attacking their nuclear facilities – have never even been mentioned for once. Neither was mentioned the Israeli development of nuclear bomb themselves.

However, this book shows that side of the story that the media of a lot of the countries, specially the Muslim ones, avoid all together. The citizens of those countries grow up knowing Israel as a monstrous nation, a group of aliens devoid of any humanity and able to perpetrate all kinds of heinous act. A mix of those versions and the version written in this book probably could have painted a more realistic picture of what actually happening in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

[Houston Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

David Brog's book had been on my reading list for a few years, constantly being pushed down the line behind other books. I decided to sit down and actually read it due to the clamor in both the media's reporting of the Israel-Hamas war and the fruitless and endless debates on social media about the "Genocide in Palestine." If you really want to understand why the Palestinians are still stateless in 2024, read this book. Since 1937, 5 peace negotiations with the Palestinians have been attempted. Each attempt was met with a firm no from the Palestinians despite the generosity of the terms outlined in each proposal and actually led to an increase in hostilities against Israel. Many people online regurgitate the surface level "analysis" from the mainstream media and thus lack critical reasoning. I can guarantee that many in the Free Palestine movement do not know who Amin al-Husseini is, the first Palestinian nationalist leader responsible for rejecting the 1947 UN Partition Plan and collaborating with Hitler during WWII to bring him to Israel after he had finished conquering Eastern Europe. Unfortunately, each successive leader of Palestine followed in the footsteps of al-Husseini, leaving the Palestinians stateless up to today. I urge everyone to do their research and to stop advocating for a two-state solution, when that has already been attempted in the past. There will never be peace due to Hamas' desire to bring about the destruction of the Jewish State. Just read the 1988 Hamas charter. Brog does an excellent job of laying out the history of the conflict and I challenge those who impugn the facts in his book to detail his errors.

[Noah Goats · Rating 5 out of 5]

Israel is the most vilified country on earth. If any other nation had suffered a sudden terrorist attack that resulted in the torture, rape, and murder of 1,400 of its citizens and the kidnapping of 240 others, the result would be a global wave of empathy, and a rallying around. The most shocking thing about the October 7th attacks is that before the bodies were even cold, and before Israel had retaliated in any way, riots against the country erupted all over the world and a global wave of violent antisemitism began washing over us instead.

Some of the antisemitism is based on hate in its purest form, but some of it seems to be based on stupidity. I spent a chunk of the day yesterday watching interviews with people protesting Israel and their profound ignorance was shocking (or would have been shocking, if the ignorance of an enormous percentage of Americans wasn't so well established a fact.) These people need to read this book.

If you had asked me last week why I support Israel, I would have given you, roughly, the answers made in this book, but now I will just point you to Reclaiming Israel's History instead. In this highly readable book, David Brog makes the case for Israel, and he does it in a succinct, clear, and forceful way. Israel has been the victim of one of the most vicious and successful propaganda campaigns in history, and Brog makes an important contribution to setting the record straight.

[عدنان العبار · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although one can't claim that this book is totally objective, as no book on the Palistinian-Israeli conflict is objective. And much of the discourse on both sides is irrational and childish. This book provides a historical justification of Israel that is not based on ancient history, but on the very recent history, and the times just before the erection of the state of Israel.

I do not like the concept of a state, whether it is a Palestinian state or an Israeli state. But this book made me think a lot about statehood, and whether it was necessary if there were jealous nations around you ready to slit your throat at any situation. The book offers a differing story than the one we keep hearing, and puts many things into perspective -- whether Palestinian or Israeli terrorism is justified, what drives terrorists from both parties, and so on. The book tries to be unbiased by criticizing Israel whenever criticism is due, but criticizing just to show one is unbiased is the opposite of being objective.

In any case, this book is a fun and good read on the history of the struggle, and presents a Case for Israel, for those who want to read such a book. I would personally pair it with Alan Dershowitz's books.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A relatively unbiased pro-Israel account of the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. While it's abundantly clear who the author sides with, he does a good job of presenting the main arguments from both perspectives, and lays out both the facts of what happened and also the context in which they occurred.

This would be an excellent introduction to people who aren't so well informed on the complexities of the situation, or have been taken in by the propaganda of one side or the other. Of course things have changed dramatically since October 7, but since that didn't take place in a vacuum, the context is more relevant than ever.

[Nicolette · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for anyone wanting to know the history of Israel and how much it has been through just to exist. Mind-opening and maddening at the same time. Especially relevant right now relating to the ongoing war in the region.

[Pam Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so informative on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. It gives a very detailed account and should be read by all who don't really understand what is going on and how it all started. I highly recommend it!

[Perlie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear, concise, and reasoned. Brog succinctly refutes all the lies and propaganda with facts, stats, and quotes. A must-read!! From ancient times to 2014, he covers it all, and lays bare the truth.

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really informative history of Israel, including many facts I didn't know.

[Armin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, thoroughly researched analysis of the roots and rammifications of the Arab-Israeli conflict. A must-read.

[Aseem Juneja · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written..But the author presented only Israel and it's people's side..Not much effort to put forward the Palestine side..

[C Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, fantastic book. Beautifully written, comprehensive and enjoyable and very educational.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was well written, researched, and answered some questions I had. I know the Bible history or Israel but that was it. This helped a lot with understanding what goes on today.

[Will · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely phenomenal. Everyone should read this book!

[Kenneth Hunt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very repetitive. Read more like a series of essays instead of a book.

[Laura Bellamy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A truly excellent overview of the history and conflict of Israel. An eye-opener for those who aren't aware of much of the history of that region. Definitely recommend.

[Queenie · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most digestible and factual books about Israel and the Palestinians.