A review by ashdurrance
How to Understand Israel in 60 Days or Less by Sarah Glidden

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

I picked this up as a way to better understand the occupation of Palestine, and despite how Israel-focused the novel is, I did learn quite a bit. Though one of the main points seems unresolved ("the occuption is complicated" is essentially the crux of it all), I nevertheless deeply admire the author's work on this subject. I appreciate how the book is blocked off into chapters which are based on the cities and towns where the author traveled to, and where she learned, or didn't learn, about Palestine. I think this book is a bit out-dated, and feels very much like Palestine is always looming in the background; the author is constantly referring to all the books and info she read up on before her trip, but never seems to fully erase the idea of Israel from her mind (as well as the maps she gives us). As someone who has only come to the Palestine issue recently, perhaps my fervor and partial upset may be linked to my anger at the Israeli government. Given the recent attacks--both from HAMAS and Israel--on October 7th of last year, it remains essential to pick up Gilsen's book as a way to elucidate this on-going issue. whether you are pro-Palestine or not, this is a must-read.