Rating: 
Summary: Informative, Human Interest and Pleasurable Reading
Review: Ra'an Meridor wrote that although she is one of Israel's founders, she learned more about Israelis from this book than living there. Before forming opinions about Israeli, learn about all types of Israelis from the stories of their lives that they tell here. The book is an easy read, you can open to any chapter or hop around. I found more humor, down to earth human interest and truth in the reporter's writing that gave me a deeper insight into the people of Israel (Moslem, Christian, Jew,Druze, European, Asian, African,Western, Orthodox, Reform, Agnostic, illiterate,scientist, etc.)than I could find anywhere including trips to Israel. In my opinion, this book of reality and hope is a must read for all people, regardless of their religion, nationality, race or political bent.The diversity of Israel's people is greater than anywhere in the world.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting blend of history, interviews and reporting
Review: Rosenthal does a stupendous job of illuminating the shadowy corners, bright spots and internal conflicts of this tiny country filled with Jews from all over the world, with little in common but a beleaguered history of persecution.With a lively and well-organized mixture of reporting, history and interviews, Rosenthal brings cultures and neighborhoods to life. She begins with the violence - a bus blown up by a suicide bomber, then follows the tentacles of conflict into everyday life. It's the violence that fuels the youth culture of work hard, play hard, and fosters a cross-cultural, patriotic military solidarity that cuts through religious and political differences. While the first section concentrates on what Israelis share, the second divides them into groups. The European Ashkenazi, educated, dominant, and often secular, arouse resentment in the middle-Eastern Mizrahi who are more religious, more conservative and poorer. Then there are the Russians, hordes of them, mostly secular, and many not even Jewish (only one Jewish grandparent is required for immigration). And strangest of all, the Ethiopians, wholly isolated and heroically rescued, many of whom never saw electricity until emigration. The third section explores religious differences: the anti-Zionist Haredim who, ironically, absorb the most from the welfare state with their large families and non-working, scholarly fathers; the Orthodox, who make up the bulk of the settlers in the occupied territories, and write the rules for marriage and divorce, and the Non-Orthodox who make up 80 percent of the population. Then there are the non-Jews: the Muslims, Christians, Druze and Bedouin. And finally there's the sexual revolution - marriage and divorce, homosexuality, prostitution. Rosenthal lets individual voices emerge from the clamor and cacaphony to plead their way of life with fervor, hope, defiance and sometimes bewilderment. Her reportage and history blend seamlessly with the interviews to provide context. This is a masterful portrait of a country built on a commonality, but rife with contradictions. It'll make you wonder what will happen if peace ever comes. A fascinating read about a tiny, beseiged country, populated by the whole wide world.
Rating:
Summary: One of most original books about Israel in years
Review: The headlines last October told only the tip of the story - 19 Israelis murdered in a horrific suicide bombing at a Haifa beachfront restaurant. Reading the story one learns that the Maxim restaurant was a symbol of coexistence in Haifa. The victims of the attack were Jews and Christians, kibbutzniks and city residents. Previous attacks have targeted Haredi ultra-Orthodox Jews; Muslim students and waiters have been among the victims as well. Digging deeper into the victims' stories one realizes that despite differences in religion, culture and belief, they are all connected to the fate of the State of Israel. Orthodox and secular Jews; Ashkenazim and Mizrahim; Christians, Muslims and Druze; Russian and Ethiopian immigrants - each sector of Israeli society has played a part in the tragic events of the three years of violence. From the outside, readers and viewers may be confused when they try to understand exactly who the Israeli people are. On the holy streets of Jerusalem and the bohemian alleyways of Tel Aviv, visitors see Jews who look like Arabs, Arabs who look like Jews. But who is the real Israeli, who dares to live a normal life in a country that, because of current events, is anything but normal? Donna Rosenthal's "The Israelis: Ordinary People in an Extraordinary Land" (Free Press, October 2003), introduces us to the real Israel, the Israel nobody knows. This is the Israel behind the news headlines, the stories of ordinary people in an extraordinary land. "The Israelis" reads like an extended feature article, as the author allows the men and women she interviewed to relate their own stories. The voices and viewpoints are alternately despairing and hopeful, defiant and conciliatory. No one is left out - the settlers, the Bedouin, Israel's gay minority - all have a voice. The total picture presented in this book is that of Israel itself, a varied, diverse, changing, evolving society that is much more than headlines. The book relates the stories of Israeli soldiers, who defend a country that has always been in a state of war. The book covers the hope offered by Israeli technology and entrepreneurship, as well as the problems of the country's illegal trade in women. Nothing is left out - the positive and negative aspects of Israeli society all play a part of this comprehensive picture. The people who tell their stories in "The Israelis" are very real. The author tells the story of the Muslim who holds the keys to the Holy Sepulcher Church in Jerusalem, as well as that of the founding fathers of the Alon Shvut settlement in Gush Etzion. Here, too, are the stories of traditional Israelis originally from Morocco who believe in miracles and vote for Shas, as well as those of secular Israelis who order Big Macs in the language of the Ten Commandments. The book makes an emotional mark when it relates the story of the clandestine human airlift that brought 14,000 Ethiopians out of Africa in thirty-six hours. This is balanced with the tale of the immigrant avalanche from the countries of the former Soviet Union, some of whom are not even Jewish, but who have contributed greatly to the country as well. If this book has a fault it's in its attempt to tell everything, to be a total picture of Israeli society and how it got to where it is today. How can a book deal with the ongoing Intifada without mentioning the horrific terror attack on Muslim worshippers perpetrated by Dr. Baruch Goldstein in Hebron in 1994? How can a study of Israelis today deal with kibbutzniks without relating to illegal immigration during the British mandate? Every element of Israel's past does play a significant part in the country's attempt to get beyond its vast security-related and social problems and provide a better future for its citizens. "The Israelis" is lively, irreverent, intimate and always fascinating. With its interweaving of hundreds of personal stories with historical facts, "The Israelis" is one of the most original books about Israel in decades.
Rating:
Summary: One of most original books about Israel in years
Review: The headlines last October told only the tip of the story - 19 Israelis murdered in a horrific suicide bombing at a Haifa beachfront restaurant. Reading the story one learns that the Maxim restaurant was a symbol of coexistence in Haifa. The victims of the attack were Jews and Christians, kibbutzniks and city residents. Previous attacks have targeted Haredi ultra-Orthodox Jews; Muslim students and waiters have been among the victims as well. Digging deeper into the victims' stories one realizes that despite differences in religion, culture and belief, they are all connected to the fate of the State of Israel. Orthodox and secular Jews; Ashkenazim and Mizrahim; Christians, Muslims and Druze; Russian and Ethiopian immigrants - each sector of Israeli society has played a part in the tragic events of the three years of violence. From the outside, readers and viewers may be confused when they try to understand exactly who the Israeli people are. On the holy streets of Jerusalem and the bohemian alleyways of Tel Aviv, visitors see Jews who look like Arabs, Arabs who look like Jews. But who is the real Israeli, who dares to live a normal life in a country that, because of current events, is anything but normal? Donna Rosenthal's "The Israelis: Ordinary People in an Extraordinary Land" (Free Press, October 2003), introduces us to the real Israel, the Israel nobody knows. This is the Israel behind the news headlines, the stories of ordinary people in an extraordinary land. "The Israelis" reads like an extended feature article, as the author allows the men and women she interviewed to relate their own stories. The voices and viewpoints are alternately despairing and hopeful, defiant and conciliatory. No one is left out - the settlers, the Bedouin, Israel's gay minority - all have a voice. The total picture presented in this book is that of Israel itself, a varied, diverse, changing, evolving society that is much more than headlines. The book relates the stories of Israeli soldiers, who defend a country that has always been in a state of war. The book covers the hope offered by Israeli technology and entrepreneurship, as well as the problems of the country's illegal trade in women. Nothing is left out - the positive and negative aspects of Israeli society all play a part of this comprehensive picture. The people who tell their stories in "The Israelis" are very real. The author tells the story of the Muslim who holds the keys to the Holy Sepulcher Church in Jerusalem, as well as that of the founding fathers of the Alon Shvut settlement in Gush Etzion. Here, too, are the stories of traditional Israelis originally from Morocco who believe in miracles and vote for Shas, as well as those of secular Israelis who order Big Macs in the language of the Ten Commandments. The book makes an emotional mark when it relates the story of the clandestine human airlift that brought 14,000 Ethiopians out of Africa in thirty-six hours. This is balanced with the tale of the immigrant avalanche from the countries of the former Soviet Union, some of whom are not even Jewish, but who have contributed greatly to the country as well. If this book has a fault it's in its attempt to tell everything, to be a total picture of Israeli society and how it got to where it is today. How can a book deal with the ongoing Intifada without mentioning the horrific terror attack on Muslim worshippers perpetrated by Dr. Baruch Goldstein in Hebron in 1994? How can a study of Israelis today deal with kibbutzniks without relating to illegal immigration during the British mandate? Every element of Israel's past does play a significant part in the country's attempt to get beyond its vast security-related and social problems and provide a better future for its citizens. "The Israelis" is lively, irreverent, intimate and always fascinating. With its interweaving of hundreds of personal stories with historical facts, "The Israelis" is one of the most original books about Israel in decades.
Rating:
Summary: Real, Honest.
Review: The Israelis is the best book on Israel I have ever read. It does not sugar coat any aspect of the current situation and is honest in its evaluation of the participants. Rosenthal does an excellent job of giving the reader a taste of the "real Israel", one that they don't see on a two-week tour of the country. I have spent a lot of time in Israel and this book taught me more about the people than ever before. I recommend this book with extremly high regard; it is an extremely easy read and is dense in content. I feel like I personally know a new handful of Israelis after reading this book.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent book about Israel and the Israelis
Review: This is a very well written book about Israel. It consists of plenty of anecdotal information about a wide variety of aspects of Israeli life.
We see young adults, the army, and entrepreneurs. We see divisions among Jews into Ashkenazim, Mizrahim, Russians, Africans, Haredim, Orthodox, and Non-Orthodox. And we see the internal and external worries and problems they have. More than that, we see their reaction to "the situation," namely the war of annihilation being fought by extremist Arabs against the Jews of the region.
Perhaps the most interesting part of the book is the description of non-Jewish Israelis: the Muslims, Bedouin, Druze, and Christians. I was amazed by the tolerance shown by the Israeli public for outright disloyalty to Israel in time of war shown by many non-Jews. I can't imagine acting so against a nation I happened to be visiting, let alone one I lived in and might even be a citizen of. These sections convinced me that there won't be any peace in the region for a long time.
One item I can't agree with is the subtitle: ordinary people in an extraordinary land. In fact, while the people are much the same as people everywhere, the land is also much the same as land everywhere. Israel is, after all, a small country that looms much larger than life due to the enormous amount of ink that is spent on it. Still, given some of the more outrageous things we sometimes see written about Israel and Israeli society from Israel's detractors, this book is a very refreshing change indeed.
Rating:
Summary: The way Israelis live now
Review: This is perhaps the best book ever written on exploring the ordinary lives of Israelis,and the way they live now. It explores in great details the lives of a wide variety of Israelis, and gives much inside information on the society. It gives very sympathetic and understanding portraits of the victims of terror. And it shows a basic understanding of the complex social reality of Israel.
It does however it seem to fall short in its ultimate political judgment and wisdom, with its endorsement of a two- state solution that might be disastrous for Israel. .It is also perhaps not completely fair and understanding of the Jewish religious public in Israel.
Nonetheless there is no other book I can think of which puts the reader more directly in contact with so many different Israelis from so many different walks of life. And it thus presents something of the complexity of Israeli life which is ordinarily absent in cliche and cardboard presentations of it in the mass media.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Book
Review: This is probably one of the best books that I have ever read on the people of Israel! I couldn't put it down. I found that the honesty and realness of the people was astounding. I reccommend it to anyone and everyone who wants to understand the Israeli people.
|
