Rating: 
Summary: Clear, concise, and yes, reflects author's opinions
Review: Well, I read many reviews and there are those who feel deceived by the book. I beg to disagree. The author lays his cards on the table on the very first page and states that if this not the kind to book you don't want to read, don't buy it. He plainly asserts that modern Israel doesn't have equality, fairness, and social justice at its roots. He states that he grew up, like most Americans, thinking the Israelis are the guys in the white hats and arrabs the black ones. And through extensive research, he came to the conclusion for the most part, the opposite is true. He documents his findings extensively, quotes from Israeli sources, and provides this reader with answers to the questions I wanted answered. It becomes clear why the conflict is hard to resolve, and what each side sees in the other. I think any avid Zionist would really hate this book for the following reasons. It rejects the idea that one group has the right to something over another based on first! groups religious beliefs, and that the rights of white, colonial rulers, have a greater say then the majority of idigenous inhabitants. I suspect the author is Jewish, as indeed he lists many of his heroes as members of the Jewish faith, and from his Judaism he draws humanistic and progressive socialist ideals, as such he refreshingly draws conclusions that Arabs and Jews are all equals and Zionist Jewish attempts to create an Israel where Jews are the chosen people or master race goes against what he stands for as a human being. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: Tries but doesn't achieve a balance
Review: I found this book useful for providing at least a counter to the overridingly pro-Israeli accounts that I've come across in my life, most of which have been less than forthright about the wrongs committed by the Israeli government & the Israeli Defence Force & its predecessors (Haganah, Irgun, Stern gang, all of which were involved in active terrorism before Israel's formation). And I found it useful for it's account of how Allied indifference to the fate of European Jews with Hitler's rise led not only to the genocide of the Holocaust, but also helped set the Middle East up for the conflict between Israeli & Palestinian that's been going on ever since, & drawing all the rest of us into it.But Ron David fails to achieve a balance. While detailing many wrongs on the Zionist side, he fails to account for many wrongs committed on the Arab & Palestinian side -- from what I can tell, either oversimplifying complex conflicts in such a way as to render Arab & Palestinian forces as entirely innocent or well-intentioned, when they often were not; or ignoring major events altogether. For example, I can't remember one mention of Haj Amin El-Husseini, Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. Note also that this book only goes up to about the end of the first Intifada, so the events of the last few years are not covered. I'm still working to fact check this book. And I'm also still trying to find a balanced account of the conflict that is completely honest about BOTH sides -- both their rights, and their wrongs, without resorting to that common tactic of intellectual cowards, e.g., racist or antisemitic attack. But if you, like me, are looking for a balanced account -- this book ain't it. Read it as an introduction to the "other" (non-Zionist) point of view on the Palestinian-Israeli crisis, but be prepared to search wider for complete truth. (If any of us should ever be so lucky as to find that scare commodity!) For those insist on claiming that Ron David is Jewish, he's not, nor does he claim to be. On his own website (do a search on "Ron David"), he identifies himself as an "Arab in America" of Lebanese descent, & thus has good reason to be interested in the widespread pro-Israel & anti-Arab, anti-Palestinian bias in the U.S. Israel didn't exactly treat Lebanon well when it invaded it a few years ago. So I don't blame him at all for his viewpoint -- although he didn't achieve a balance, he sure did a lot better than most of the pro-Zionist accounts I've ever come across. In summary, I award this book 2 stars for offering information that few if any pro-Israel accounts provide about the less savory aspects of Israeli & Zionist history. Another 1 star for some good, if incomplete, analysis of how the world community failed European Jews and contributed to the Holocaust. I withhold 2 stars due to its relative silence on the less savory aspects of Palestinian & Arab actions in the conflict with Israel, & for dashing my hopes to finally finding a balanced account.
Rating:
Summary: Important facts for the uninitiated
Review: Written by a Jewish American who actually bothered to research the historical facts behind the conflict, rather than believe the spin so prevalent in the media. He is critical of both sides, but comes to the correct conclusion that this is basically about a confiscation and an occupation, and that no peace or security for Israel will come unless that essential injustice is addressed.
Rating: 
Summary: Biased, and openly anti-Semetic
Review: The situation in the Middle East is complex, and we need a (mostly) unbiased book to introduce newcomers to the subject. This is not even close to that book. This work is overflowing with hate, lies, and not even an ounce of the universal love for human life that its author (who is Arab, not Jewish depite what some reviews said) claims to have. I don't even know where to start with this book. Its clear to me that the uninitiated will not recognize how hateful this book is, and will simply take everything as fact. This is sad to me, as blindly pro-Palestinian views (as well as anti-Semetism) are on the rise. There are many examples of why this book is horrible.
1) The author uses the common neo-Nazi lie that Zionists helped Hitler. You will never find a reputable historian who will agree with this. This is sheer propoganda.
2) The Author tries to show that Judaism is inherently evil by using Biblical events, such as the conquering of Israel by Joshua. He completely whitewashes Islam of such a history, and instead paints it as completely peace-loving. In addition, he makes up the lie that Jews fared well in Islamic nations, ignoring the numerous policies of forced conversion.
3) He takes admittedly controversial events as pure fact. An example is Jenin, which most people believe did not happen as originally stated (Time Magazine apologized for misreporting on it, and the UN officially said there was no wrongdoing). He also assumes that the mistaken attack on the USS Liberty was purposeful, despite all evidence to the contrary, and says so in a "see, I told you America shouldn't support Israel" tone.
4) He tries to show that Jews only lived in Israel for a short time, and incorrectly believes that mesopotamians, egyptians, cannannites, and other previous inhabitants of Israel were Arabs. He fails to mention that the land that is now Israel (minus the West Bank) has had a Jewish MAJORITY since the time of Christ, as has Jerusalem.
5) He falsely claims that Israel started all of the wars against her neighbors, depite what one will read in any account from someone who is actually a reputable hisorian.
6) He never deals with the fact that all other Arab nations have closed their borders to Palestinians, instead prefering to use them as political pawns. I recommend everyone also read this site (http://www.us-israel.org/jsource/myths/cover.html) which most will not do because it is Jewish, despite their willingness to read Ron David's book. I'm sure hate-filled pro-Israel works exist, but the one on the website is not one of them, but do read it with a grain of salt, but READ IT, and you may change your mind about some of Ron David's conclusions. I have met many pro-Palestinian people who I believe are very caring people with good hearts. They will probably read this book and accept its assertions, and, while not hating Jews, will still assert that it was not right for them to settle in Israel/Palestine. That's a sensible, if controversial, conclusion to have, but David is not like this. He is much more hateful, as can be seen in his sarcastic, angry book. So to all sensible people on both sides of the debate, please do not read this book as it is hateful, full of lies, and paints a very bad picture of what the pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel movements are all about. One more thing- it is astonishing that people do not recognize that David's claims about Zionist involvent in the Holocaust are pure racism. Imagine if I said that Africans volunteered to be slaves just to trick the white people into taking them to America so they could breed and take over our white cities. I'd be called a racist, and people would probably think I must be a KKK member, and they would be justified in denouncing me. Why do people not recognize the racism in BOTH cases??? It makes me sad.
Rating:
Summary: Very Opinionated, not very informative
Review: I purchased this book thinking that it would be written in a fair and balanced perspective. It's not. It's very opinionated and it is clearly biased. The book starts off with by briefly mentioning the past civilizations that have existed in the Middle east. This was my least favorite part of the book. This part of the book just wasn't that interesting, and he (Ron David) included strange and unusual facts (having to do with violence) about Jewish history, that were not worthy of making any mention of. The author went out of his way to give the reader a negative image of Judaism. He also wrote ugly things about christianity, saying at one point that christianity is "crap." I realized after reading just a few pages that the author is extremist and weird. I agree with the author on a great deal of things. I think that Ariel Sharon, the Prime minister of israel is,indeed, a terrorist and a mass Murderer. Menachem Begin, Yitzak Shamir, they were all terrorists...and israeli soldiers have committed atrocities in the occupied West bank and gaza Strip territories and in Lebanon, however, the author makes very little (barely any)mention of terrorism against israelis (there are very few exapmples provided in the book, and this is very unfair, and by doing this, the author fails to allow the reader to have a broader and much more comprehensive understanding of the Arab-israeli conflict. The other problem that I have with the book is that it just isn't very informative. Very little information about the Arab-Israeli wars is provided! I was especially disappointed with his section on the 1956 Suez canal war. It doesn't even mention the fact that the British and French helped the israelis invade the Suez Canal. It gives you about a paragraph worth of information about that particular war. The author also fails to make it clear to the reader why the 1956 Suez Canal, 1967 Six Day War, and 1973 wars were fought, and it doesn't say what happened during those wars, and as a result. If i had no knowledge of the arab-israeli conflict prior to reading this book, i would have been very confused. A good thing about this book is that alot of information about the 1982 invasion of Lebanon is provided (though essential details are ommitted. The author mentions alot of things without explaining why they happen. For example, according to the author, the Israeli Air force hijacked a Syrian arliner in 1954,an Egyptian plane in 1985, (which he says, killed 60 people)and a Libyan airliner in 1986. The author makes very vague claims, and does not explain why an event happens. Now before reading this book, I didn't know about these hijackings, and so after reading about them, I looked for more information on the internet, but I couldn't find any information concerning those particular events at all...but that's not to say that they didn't happen (though i must admitt that I am doubtful that the hijackings ever occured). It would seem highly unlikely to me though, that the israelis would have hijacked an Egyptian airliner, because Israel had signed a peace treaty with Egypt... A bibliography is provided at the end of the book. However, there is no way of knowing the sources for specific information, and quotations found within the book. The Sources are all supposedly listed, but there is no way that you can verify the legitimacy of some of the claims that he makes, because you don't know what information was used from each source.
Rating:
Summary: What book are some of these reviewers reading?
Review: This is not a great work of literature, it is a brief summary. I tried to cross reference some of the facts with other well known books and it seemed reasonably accurate. Just two things that bothered other reviewers were the willingness of some groups ("Stern Gang") to cooperate with Nazi Germany and the refusal of Zionist leaders to accept any other solution than Palestine for fleeing Jewish refugees. Both topics are confirmed in Oxford Scholar Sir Martin Gilbert's book on Israel (p111 and p113) and elsewhere. One person commented that the writer was not Jewish and was an Arab. Give me a break.
Read the damn book and several others. Make up your own mind but don't blast the book without first cross referencing it. It makes your own bias too obvious. This is a terrible problem for all concerned and one that needs careful thought not violent words and actions.
Rating:
Summary: A compact hisotry of the Middle East.
Review: Arabs and Israel for Beginners was the first progressive book that I ever read, and it still does not fail to impress me. At the time I read this book I knew that the American media's portrayal of Israel as an innocent country who only attacked Arab countries in reaction to a previous attack was a outright lie, and I knew about the high amount of aid that Israel received from American tax dollars, but I needed facts. That's exactly where this book came in. In addition to learning the reality behind Israeli policy, its formation and the part America plays in it, I also learned about the history of the Arab people, my ancestors, who the original Arabs where, what they were like, and where they were located. The book gives a detailed history of both peoples, from ancient times to the present. The book is perfect for those who need an introductory reading on the Middle East and its history, as the name implies. I can understand why Zionists and Right Wingers would be angry with this book; it presents a contradiction to their most fundamental beliefs about the Middle East. It was written at a time when the media whitewashed everything Israel did to make it seem like self defense, a time not very different from now. Although the book does not go into very much detail about the American interventions in the Arab world, that would have made the book much more informative. I suppose it is only natural that this book would be labeled as anti-Semitic; there are few books that give information about Israeli violence in the Middle East and escape that accusation. For example, the book, "They Dare to Speak Out," was labeled as anti-Semitic by many, even though the writer told of the shortcomings of both the Israeli and Arab governments. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to know the history of the Arab and Jewish world.
Rating:
Summary: A pack of lies and propaganda
Review: The back of the book claims it is "fair to both Arabs and Jews." That's its first, and perhaps biggest deception. I recognized many of the propaganda inside the book, as it is every anti-Israel and anti-Jewish deception that has polarized this complicated issue. Just a few: A) The patently false assertion that "Zionists aided Hitler" believing that the Holocaust would help the formation of Israel. (a disgusting piece of propaganda asserted by those who would prefer to learn nothing from the Holocaust, as well as blame it on the Jews) B) The 1967 war was "entire caused by Israel." He conveniently neglects to mention the anti-jewish rhetoric preceeding the war, Egypt closing the straits of tiran, and perhaps the most telling, the fact that Egypt dismissed the UN peacekeepers prior to militarizing the Sinai desert. I suppose Israel tricked Egypt into dismissing the UN peacekeepers to make the war easier for them? C) Propagating the mythical "Golden Age under Islam" as if Dhimmi were something more than second class subjects. Why is this book popular? Examining it on the web, I found that it is apparently on the reading list of the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) a so-called "peace" movement which defends Palestinian terrorists from israeli soldiers- though tellingly, they do NOT ride buses to protect Israelis from Palestinian suicide bombers. Even their website demonstrates that they are not peace activiists but proponents of the Palestinian cause. Ron David's book does likewise. The use of this book is that it could make a decent resource for examining anti-Israel propaganda. Ron David claims that no one with an IQ over 50 could be Pro-Israel. Well, I assert that no one with an IQ of 50 could take his book seriously, especially with his psychotic, ranting writing style. The pictures are pretty, but his mind is that of a deranged hater. Alas that there are people like him who give his book favorable reviews.
Rating:
Summary: good, but slanted
Review: I read david's book and found it very interesting and informative.
There is no doubt that his book is very biased, just as he warns us not to be when opening the first pages.
There are legitimate descriptions of how the west has unconditionally supported Israel despite the fatc that Arabic peoples have lived there for nearly two thousand years. But, david makes other wild generalizations that make his important points questionable. Such as his short rampage about the race of ancient Egyptians... claiming that racism dictated that the west believe that it was people like them selves rather than black Africans that reigned there.
Seems like the most commonly accepted ideas, probably substantiated by the great many bodies found there, is that mesopotamian migration was the baisi for the Nile civilization. And, yes, historians even acknowlege that black tribes from Kush conquered tham.
Maybe that's a tangent, but it was one of many things thta distracted me from what I thought was mostly meant to explain to me that the Palestinians had the right to be there... legitimately.
Good book for discussion, I thought, if you can see beyond the holier tyhan thou preaching and side line revisions of his own.small
Rating:
Summary: Provides the missing pieces
Review: If, like me, you wonder what in the world the conflict in the Middle East is all about, this book is a good place to start. The facts that will astound you. The author educates with a sense of humor, and in no time at all, you understand the answer to the question of our time: why do they hate us? I recommend this book to every citizen in our democracy. For me, the "news" this book delivered was as big a revelation as if I'd just, for the first time, learned about slavery.
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