What do you think?
Rate this book
Zionism: The Concise History
The story of Zionism, the Jewish movement of national liberation that led to the founding of modern Israel, is animated by leaders possessed with rare vision and political genius. It is also a story of tragedy, false dawns and suffering on an incomprehensible scale. Above all, it is a story without precedent, that saw an ancient, scattered, persecuted people who had limped from one disaster to the next, achieving a return to freedom in the lands of their ancestors nearly two millennia after their exile. In this extraordinary feat of narrative history, Alex Ryvchin tells the gripping story of Zionism, a movement that has become one of the most controversial and least understood political concepts of our time, one that remains central to modern Jewish identity and to war and peace in the Middle East.
- GenresIsrael
250 pages, Paperback
Published September 30, 2019
7 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 15, 2024
I have finished reading “Zionism: The Concise History” by Alex Ryvchin.
This is a short historical account of how Zionism, the Jewish national liberation movement, developed from conception to achieve it’s goal; the establishment of a homeland nation-state for Jews.
Theodor Herzl, a flamboyant Hungarian journalist and cosmopolitan Jew made the decision to launch the modern Zionist movement after yet another display of European antisemitism. At the end of the 19th Century, the Jewish French Artillery Officer Dreyfuss was wrongfully accused of espionage and publicly disgraced. Leaks from messages between members of the French Army Command revealed openly antisemitic attitudes among the top brass. Herzl came to a realisation; no matter how Jews tried to assimilate in Europe they could never be safe. His solution was to call for the Jews to establish a new national homeland.
I found the book was strongest describing the time from the Roman-driven expulsions of the Jews from the lands of Palestine (named by the Romans) up to the development of Zionism up to the founding of the state of Israel in 1948. After that I felt the book lost focus on the history of Zionism and had more of a political axe to grind (although it was not always wrong).
This book’s narrative is punctuated by the grim chronicling of periodic outbursts of antisemitic violence over many years in many different places in Europe. From York to what-is-now Moldova innocent Jews have again and again experienced horrific violence at the hands of their neighbours, either driven by government forces or ignored by them. I felt quite physically ill reading about each of these incidents, especially those that involved violence towards children. This theme of many Jews not feeling safe next to their neighbours in Europe (especially Eastern Europe) is returned to with more importance in the aftermath of the Holocaust. The British and the Americans are put in the position where a decision about what to do about the Mandate lands cannot be postponed any longer.
I feel this book was strongest when it stuck to it’s stated aim. When it became more of a testimonial on behalf of justifying Zionism and, more controversially, the conduct of the Israeli state with regard to the Palestinians it was on shakier ground.
I felt the time this book made making a political argument distracted it from telling the story of home Zionism developed and the various divisions within it. How many people knew that there was a genuine division in the movement about setting up a Jewish homeland in Palestine or somewhere else completely different. Joseph Chamberlain offered the Zionists a part of Uganda. Some Zionists opted for a part of Texas. But in the end the main movement focused on the lands of Palestine. This entire debate was absent from the book to a great degree. There was only a brief discussion about the rise of Revisionist Zionism, pioneered by Jabotinsky, which is a shame since this topic deserves at least it’s own chapter. This I feel was the ultimate weakness of this book; the depth of the movement was lost in the book’s pursuit of a specific agenda. I will have to verify through forward reading whether the Arab and Palestinian leaderships were as obstructive and sometimes wantonly cruel to hopeful Jewish settlers, as this author describes.
The book does leave one with a pause for thought when describing anti-zionist movements. By being anti-zionist by objective, these movements are by definition against the existence of the State of Israel (since Zionism’s objective was literally the founding of Israel), NOT against certain actions by the Israeli state. This should give conscientious supporters of these movements pause for thought. Having said that I found it quite chilling about how this book seemed to pointedly ignore casualty counts on the Palestinian side during the founding of Israel and subsequent conflicts. Surely if one is to achieve understanding, one needs to learn to practice empathy and at least recognise the other side’s pain?
This is a short historical account of how Zionism, the Jewish national liberation movement, developed from conception to achieve it’s goal; the establishment of a homeland nation-state for Jews.
Theodor Herzl, a flamboyant Hungarian journalist and cosmopolitan Jew made the decision to launch the modern Zionist movement after yet another display of European antisemitism. At the end of the 19th Century, the Jewish French Artillery Officer Dreyfuss was wrongfully accused of espionage and publicly disgraced. Leaks from messages between members of the French Army Command revealed openly antisemitic attitudes among the top brass. Herzl came to a realisation; no matter how Jews tried to assimilate in Europe they could never be safe. His solution was to call for the Jews to establish a new national homeland.
I found the book was strongest describing the time from the Roman-driven expulsions of the Jews from the lands of Palestine (named by the Romans) up to the development of Zionism up to the founding of the state of Israel in 1948. After that I felt the book lost focus on the history of Zionism and had more of a political axe to grind (although it was not always wrong).
This book’s narrative is punctuated by the grim chronicling of periodic outbursts of antisemitic violence over many years in many different places in Europe. From York to what-is-now Moldova innocent Jews have again and again experienced horrific violence at the hands of their neighbours, either driven by government forces or ignored by them. I felt quite physically ill reading about each of these incidents, especially those that involved violence towards children. This theme of many Jews not feeling safe next to their neighbours in Europe (especially Eastern Europe) is returned to with more importance in the aftermath of the Holocaust. The British and the Americans are put in the position where a decision about what to do about the Mandate lands cannot be postponed any longer.
I feel this book was strongest when it stuck to it’s stated aim. When it became more of a testimonial on behalf of justifying Zionism and, more controversially, the conduct of the Israeli state with regard to the Palestinians it was on shakier ground.
I felt the time this book made making a political argument distracted it from telling the story of home Zionism developed and the various divisions within it. How many people knew that there was a genuine division in the movement about setting up a Jewish homeland in Palestine or somewhere else completely different. Joseph Chamberlain offered the Zionists a part of Uganda. Some Zionists opted for a part of Texas. But in the end the main movement focused on the lands of Palestine. This entire debate was absent from the book to a great degree. There was only a brief discussion about the rise of Revisionist Zionism, pioneered by Jabotinsky, which is a shame since this topic deserves at least it’s own chapter. This I feel was the ultimate weakness of this book; the depth of the movement was lost in the book’s pursuit of a specific agenda. I will have to verify through forward reading whether the Arab and Palestinian leaderships were as obstructive and sometimes wantonly cruel to hopeful Jewish settlers, as this author describes.
The book does leave one with a pause for thought when describing anti-zionist movements. By being anti-zionist by objective, these movements are by definition against the existence of the State of Israel (since Zionism’s objective was literally the founding of Israel), NOT against certain actions by the Israeli state. This should give conscientious supporters of these movements pause for thought. Having said that I found it quite chilling about how this book seemed to pointedly ignore casualty counts on the Palestinian side during the founding of Israel and subsequent conflicts. Surely if one is to achieve understanding, one needs to learn to practice empathy and at least recognise the other side’s pain?
June 2, 2021
A small book full of punch. It dispells the mirage of knowledge of ME History. Sure the author's viewpoint is identifiable yet more facts are given than rhetoric. The historic incidences are disturbing and stick in your mind. Not everyone's cup of tea but a book that is required reading for anyone who wants to at least have some informed knowledge of this much fought over and contentious piece of our world.
January 3, 2026
A concise history of Zionism. Rather than screaming slogans or liking memes, read this to get a better understanding of what is happening in Israel and the broader Middle East today. Context is everything - this book provides it.
February 27, 2020
Excellent summary of Zionist history, from its very beginnings to the creation of the State of Israel. Great starting point for anyone looking to learn a little bit more about Zionism.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews