review
‘A history of Israel ?? from the rise of Zionism to our time ”is the reference work on the history of Israel written by Howard M. Sachar. This enormous pill of almost 1300 pages gives a very detailed description of (the origin of) Israel. 41 chapters describe the entire history of the country from the arrival of the first Zionists. This book is objective and does not shy away from criticizing Israel. In 2007, the third revised and expanded edition of the book was released. The review is about this edition.
data
- title: A history of Israel ?? from the rise of Zionism to our time
- author: Howard M. Sachar
- year: 2007 ?? 3rd edition
- publisher: Alfred A. Knopf (New York)
- ISBN: 978-0-375-71132-9
Contents of ‘A history of Israel’
Every so often, historian Howard M. Sachar releases a new version of his widely acclaimed book “A history of Israel”. The first edition was published in 1976. Number two followed in 1996. And in 2007 followed the third and last edition so far. There is also so much happening in Israel that a new edition is regularly necessary. Sachar has opted for a chronological approach. Some historians opt for a thematic approach, but that leads to a lot of overlap and is also difficult for laymen to follow the common thread. There are 41 chapters that provide some overview in the chronology. Of course the conflict between Israel and the Arab countries / Palestinians is central. But also issues such as immigration, the formation of the Jewish state, the economy, etc. are discussed. There are 37 cards, which is little for a 1300-page pill. The Israeli-Arab conflict is best depicted through maps.
The book is intended for university students (also used) and interested readers. Sachar also hopes that historians of modern history will make use of it. A huge bibliography has been used, arranged by chapter. Very useful for further study (much of the literature is in English, although Hebrew material has also been used). Finally, the book has an extensive index with reference to the pages.
View from Etsel
This book is certainly not suitable for beginners. As Sachar reports, it is mainly intended for university students. There are detailed descriptions and reading requires a fair amount of concentration. But if you really want to know more about the history of Israel, this book is extremely suitable. It is complete and detailed. That is why I have chosen this book, which I myself was also taught at the university (an earlier edition), as a source for my articles on the history of Israel that I write for InfoNu. In fact, my articles are an excerpt from this book. I use this book not only because it is so complete, but also because I think it is very objective and reliable. Nowadays (since the arrival of the new historians in Israel – Baruch Kimmerling (also sociologist and political scientist), Ilan Pappé, Benny Morris, etc.) many people only consider a book about Israel objectively when it is anti-Israel. But that is of course nonsense. Criticism of Israel is allowed provided it is done on good grounds. In no country in the world is there so much self-criticism as in Israel. That is a good attitude towards life. After all, you have to learn from mistakes.
As far as I am concerned, the book could have contained more maps. Especially in Israel, the conflict revolves around area that can best be depicted through maps. However, anyone who wants to have maps to hand in addition to this book would be wise to use Martin Gilbert’s Atlas of the Arab-Israeli Conflict. Whoever uses these two books together will see the picture of the history of Israel completely.
Conclusion: This is an extensive book on Israel’s history up to 2007. It is especially suitable for readers who know a little more about Israel but do not yet know all the details. And it is precisely these that are important for a good understanding of the land of Israel and its history.