The Complete Idiot's Guide to Middle East Conflict (2nd Edition)

Rating:
Summary: Nonsense
Review: Naturally, anything having to do with the mideast will be accused of being biased by one side or another, but this particular book is not only very biased, not only disingenious because it pretends to be an objective "guide", but downright inaccurate! Almost all of the historical myths in this book (example: that Israel defeated superior forces in 1948, that the Palestinians left voluntarily and were not ethnically-cleansed by Israel, etc.) have been totally repudiated especially by the legitimate Israel historians such as Benny Morris and AVI Shliam.

Rating:
Summary: Very Good, but Only One Side of the Story
Review: An African proverb says, "Until lions have historians, tales of lion hunting will always glorify the hunter." That's kind of how I feel about this book. It is well-written, clear, and full of important historical facts. But the author is also a pro-Jewish, pro-Israeli activist (according to the book), and no attempt is made to consider the Israel/Palestine issue from the Arab perspective. The book is very good; I just wish it were more balanced.

Rating:
Summary: Uninformed but NOT a complete idiot!
Review: One would have to BE a complete idiot to believe this author's version of history! It's unfortunate that this book, which is obviously marketed toward those with little knowledge about the conflicts in the Middle East, was written with such a heavy bias. I may not know much about history, but I know when someone is trying to con me. Despite this I found the book to be very helpful in providing an easy to understand general outline of the sequence of historical events. It also had many interesting tidbits, such as Theodor Herzl's 1903 proposal that the Jewish home be made in Uganda instead of "Palestine!" If you are looking for a fair, well rounded view of specific events you'll have to find a different book.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: It would be wonderful to have a writer that can explain the conflict between the Palestinians and Israelis without being biased. Mitchell Bard is not one of them. This is a disturbing book to read when one actually has studied the topic. It's obvious that you favor one side and it's misleading to unsuspecting readers.

Rating:
Summary: Misleading
Review: The extremity of opinions presented evident here shows that the book was anything but unbiased. It was catered for one side, with little regard for historical facts or detached objectivity. It is within Dr. Bard's right to hold opinions and publish those. However, it is downright insincere to do it in the guise of an objective first-read for unsuspecting readers.

Rating:
Summary: Well-balanced
Review: This well-balanced work shows the positive and negative of both sides of the issues in the Middle East. It goes beyond the headlines to the roots of the conflict. It focuses on more than politics and shows how other factors contribute to the conflict. The "idiot" title is misleading, since this is a really well-written, comprehensive overview of the history of the Middle East. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED reading.

Rating:
Summary: The truth hurts...
Review: Bard's account of the current Middle East quagmire and its history is unfailingly right on the mark. His research on the missteps of all the parties involved, the outright lies and deception by the world, the anti-Jewish bias of the world press (for instance, the Sabra and Shatila massacres were nothing compared to what the PLO and PLF has done to the very same camps -- more than 4 times as people murdered by their own forces). Bard also does not mince words in pointing out Israeli desires of land expansion and harsh policies in dealing with the Arab population. Most impressive new fact? That neither Syria, Egypt, nor Jordan recognised that a separate "Palestinian" people even existed until around 1978. Each country's leaders and UN ambassadors viewed them as either Syrian arabs or Jordanians....

Rating:
Summary: SHAMEFUL
Review: I cannot believe that a book so biased and so innacurate is out there, under the disguise of a "let's tell you the real deal" publication. But then again it is the idiot's guide... What is so dangerous and so frightening is that it may be the only book that certain people pick up to 'get an idea' of what's going on in the Middle East and what they will get is the old worn out and overplayed idea that all the problems are the Arabs' fault and the Israeli's are just trying to work things out. I think that our (US) media has done enough of that mythmaking, we don't need any more of it. Even the most untrained eye will be able to see that all the massacres carried out by Israel are excused or glossed over or even suggested to be just made up despite the facts, while anything violent done by the Palestenians is emphasised and is turned into comic strip villiany, without even considering that they, as occupied people may have a few problems with the situation. People, read something useful and leave this pathetic attempt at propaganda to the dummies.

Rating:
Summary: biased from the beginning
Review: The title of Middle East Conflict indicates an immediate bias against the Middle East in general by identifying the region solely with the wars that have marred its twentieth century history. Still, one could have hoped that the book might have presented the the many complex facets of post-colonialism, mutually unrecognized land and human rights, and cultural and historical mistrust and miscommunication which have mired Arab, Israeli, and Iranian relations since World War I. Instead, this book focuses solely on a blithely pro-Israeli, pro-American stance which does nothing but exacerbate the existant prejudices against the Muslim world. The resultant attitude, in turn, propagates popular Middle Eastern mistrust of Israel and America. If the US makes no effort to see all sides as equals with reasonable grievances, rights, and aspirations then there can be no hope for an end to conflict in the Middle East. Clearly, in their failure to promote such understanding, neither this author nor this publisher sees such mutually acceptable peace as a goal.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent overview of conflict in the middle east
Review: Having little knowledge of the history of the conflict, I was eager to learn "just what is going on over there?" I agree that this book is somewhat pro-Israel, but keeping that in mind I found it to be quite interesting. While the author does present some opinion, the vast majority of the book concerns factual events. The book starts with a short history of the three major religions involved (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), then covers events in the region throughout history. It moves generally chronologically, although it covers certain subjects in total; for example, the Iran-Iraq war is covered in a separate chapter, though events in other chapters occurred simultaneously. After finishing this book, I had a much greater understanding of why there is so much animosity in the middle east.