Rating: 
Summary: A Great Introduction to the Middle East
Review: I found this book a great read. Especially, if you're like me and don't have much prior knowledge of Middle Eastern politics, history and culture, you will find in this book a wealth of information. Friedman was based in the Middle East as a foreign correspondant for the NY Times for many years, so he relates his experiences and thoughts about a very complicated geo-political region with the clarity of a veteran journalist. His knowledge of the region is thorough and from first-hand experience and he writes for a wide audience. Although this book is lengthy, you will find yourself engrossed in the writing and will emerge much more educated for having read this. The context for the book is the 1980s, but many of the lessons are still pertinent today. Furthermore, many of the conflicts he describes are integral for understanding contemporary Middle East politics and to put current events in historical perspective. If you have an interest in the Middle East, take the time to read this.
Rating: 
Summary: A great read
Review: Tom Friedman has many assets. First, his sense of observation is exellent, second, his style is very entertaining, and third, he was a very hard working reporter who has many stories to share.
While many might think that the book is outdated, I believe many of its arguments still stand. Even with the Lebanese civil war that Friedman describes now over, the Lebanese society is still divided over the same issues and, more or less, along the same lines Friedman describes.
The second part of the book, which talks about Friedman's stay in Jerusalem, is also reflective of the current Israeli situation. Israelis still struggle to define what kind of nation they are and inside which boundaries they should live.
Reading between the lines, anyone can tell that Fridman is a peace advocate, trying to highlight fear and frustration on both sides (the Arab and the Israeli) and the willingness to live in peace among most people of both nations.
I've heard many Middle Eastern academics criticizing this book and undermining its importance. On top of those was late Columbia University Palestinian-American professor Edward Said, who accuses Friedman of orientalism, a term he coined that undermines the credibility of Western writers who claim to be an authority on Eastern issues. While Said might have some point in his accusations, he should have still given some credit to a book full of details. As an Arab, I'd say that for most parts of the book, Friedman's description was fair and accurate.
Friedman's From Beirut to Jerusalem has become a classic work, and I believe there is much reason for that. This is Friedman's best work, all readers interested in the Middle East should buy this book and read it.
Rating:
Summary: The unfairness of false symmetry
Review: A number of other Amazon reviews have pointed out the major error of Friedman. He bends over backwards to be ' objective' and in the process distorts reality . He has a visceral dislike for the Jews who live in Judaea and Samaria and cannot write of them with sympathy. He is one of those who argues a ' false symmetry' between the Palestinians who advocate terror, and the Israelis whose military action is in self- defense. He pretends to be fair, but lacks real judgment and the courage to see that one side in the Middle East conflict is far more right than the other. In this he is the perfect representative of the paper he represents, the NY Times which for years has worked to blame Israel when it should have been defending the Middle East's only democracy.
Rating:
Summary: Non-Fiction Dominates
Review: Throughout my reading of this fantastic piece, I had encountered many internal arguments within my mind. I was being torn apart. On one hand, I was shocked at how little I knew about the Middle East, and I read this book enthusiastically, my mind hungry for more information which I was subconsciously certain this book contained. On the other hand, I felt an almost hopeless dilemma surfacing in my thoughts. Although packed with information about the Middle East, From Beirut to Jerusalem would be one of the many books I would have to read to become even remotely close to an expert in this field. So while I devoured the information the book contained within its pages, the inevitable thought loomed in my mind that I would only have an extremely superficial knowledge of the Middle East at the conclusion Thomas Friedman's work. Nevertheless, this New York Times correspondent wrote an excellent depiction of two of the world's most influential cities; Beirut, and Jerusalem. Although the novel may not provide all the information there is about these two cities (such a novel would contain hundreds of thousands of pages I am sure), Friedman's work had an incredible efficiency to it. I will not give anything away about this work for I believe any summary not written by the hand of the author will certainly lack an important aspect which the overall story requires.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST introduction to the middle east
Review: As one of the first books I read about Middle East, and its
conflicts, I RECOMMEND this book STRONGLY for everyone: those that
are new to the region, needing an introduction to the Middle East,
as well as those who want to refresh their knowledge of the region
and the various forms of conflict so common there.The Middle East can be a confusing place but Friedman sorts it out
for you. FRIEDMAN IS SUCH A TERRIFIC WRITER he made me feel
confident in my new found knowledge, relieved to have his insight
as my foundation, and so wanting to learn more about the entire
region. I read "From Beirut to Jerusalem" for the first time just before
the first Gulf War; now it is my touchstone, reading parts, or
all of it, again when things over there get crazier. While Friedman focuses on Lebanon and Israel in this book, he
really is providing you with an understanding of the whole
framework of the Middle East and its conflicts: between countries,
within countries, amongst religions, between peoples of different
ethnic, cultural or racial backgrounds. Warring religious conflicts within Lebanon may remind you of the
religious tensions between the Sunnis of northern Iraq and the
Shi'ia of south. Syria's late Assad's massive killing of his own
people will immediately remind you of the murder by Saddam Huessin
of the Kurds in northern Iraq. Even if Israel didn't exist, many of these conflicts would have
happened anyway...and will continue to happen. Now the fastest growing portion of the Arab and Muslim populations
are the school-aged and young adults. Most have limited
educations and little in the way of meaningful employment to look
forward to. Is it therefore any surprise some of them are so very
frustrated, dissatisfied and unhappy they would become militant
or terrorists. Although Israel has done some good things for the peoples of the
West Bank, it is unfortunately outweighed by the bad its done there and in Gaza. And with Israel's peoples being so different than most of the
Middle East and carrying Mohammed's Qu'ran stories of the Jews'
friendship and then perceived betrayal of Mohammed over 700 years
ago, one can see why attacking Israel is a whole lot easier for
these terrorists than challenging the regimes they live under for
better opportunities. I wish all Americans, at least, would read this book so they
would be better versed in what happens in the rest of the world.
This is a GREAT BOOK.
Rating:
Summary: great book
Review: I grew up in Beirut; I found this book very insightful. I can say that this book pretty much reflects what really happened in Beirut. If you want an objective view, this book is a must read. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to understand more about what the real situation is like in Palestine and Israel; And what took place in Beirut.
Rating: 
Summary: Rambo's analysis
Review: No matter how "exciting" this book may be to read (and not to base our opinions upon), just like Hollywood's Rambo, where Stalone knows everything about his enemy and overcomes all the problems to finally kill a whole army or nation (where ironically they all happen to be in what is known today as "terrorists") and sells it all around the globe. Friedman thinks he knows it all when it comes to "analysing" the Lebanese crisis and the Israeli socio-religious complexity, while in my opinion reading about the Mideast's history may be helpful, in addition to some classical music knowledge at least to know that Pachelbel's CaNon doesnt include any firing of any caNNon. And by the way, a Canon is the strictest form of imitation in musical composition in which the voices or melodies begin one after another, at regular intervals, successively taking up the same subject.
|
