"[A]n accessible and balanced survey of the Israel-Palestinian conflict . . . Readers will welcome this informative and fair-minded primer on one of the world's most fiercely debated issues" --Publishers Weekly

"If you fall into the camp of the "curious, confused, and conflicted," then this book is for you. [Sokatch] provid[es] an engaging and evenhanded . . . history of the conflict" --The New York Times Book Review

". . . Sokatch has the bravery to come along with an antidote that suggests that there is always so much more than one truth . . . He disrupts and therefore re-nuances the accepted narratives, and he does this with great generosity of style and spirit. This is an important book, exceedingly well written, full of insight and empathy and even humor in the face of all available evidence" --Colum McCann, National Book Award-winning author

"One of the best short contemporary guides to the complicated politics of the place" --American Prospect

"Everything that so often seems lacking in our thoughts, feelings, and arguments about Israel and Palestine-clarity, fair-mindedness, and universal compassion-can be found in this elegantly written and surprisingly entertaining book" --Michael Chabon & Ayelet Waldman

"Daniel Sokatch has done the impossible-he writes a breezy, sometimes even witty book about the always hot-button, depressing, and controversial topic of Israel and Palestine . . . [S]omehow he weaves a historical commentary that is both authoritative and entertaining. He must be some kind of wise man-or at least a mensch" --Kai Bird, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of CROSSING MANDELBAUM GATE and THE OUTLIER

"This is an important overview of Jewish perspectives, both in Israel and in the United States, of Israel and its conflict with the Palestinians. It is balanced, insightful, and highly recommended" --Hussein Ibish, Senior Resident Scholar, Arab Gulf States Institute of Washington

"Daniel Sokatch has done a remarkable job telling the story of Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in clear, understandable terms. No reader will agree with everything he writes. That's good! But every reader should appreciate his honesty, passion, intellect, and humanity" --Daniel Shapiro, U.S. Ambassador to Israel, 2011-2017

"Israel is a nation, a symbol, a legacy, an enigma, a disappointment, an outrage, and a promise all in one, and untangling those threads can seem overwhelming. If your answer to the question 'can we talk about Israel?' is 'do we have to?' then this is the book for you. It is essential not just for its frank and accessible narrative, but also for Daniel Sokatch's ability to fill the gulf of knowledge that leaves so many of us outside a vital conversation" --Prof. Juliette Kayyem, Faculty Chair of the Homeland Security Project, Harvard's Kennedy School of Government

"Like almost everyone, I can hardly think about Israel without feeling furious, saddened, frightened, righteous and wrong. At last, here is a clearheaded, evenhanded book about a crucial and troubled region that makes all of us bonkers." --Daniel Handler

"[Sokatch] earnestly and humanely parses the Palestinian-Israeli conflict . . . from the fair-minded position that Israelis and Palestinians are both right and both wrong . . . An optimistic, evenhanded instruction manual, with upbeat illustrations, for anyone trying to understand the conflict" --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"A calm, balanced guide .... What Sokatch offers, then, is an accessible, engaging explanation of the Israel-Palestine conflict" --Keith Kahn-Harris, Times Literary Supplement