Can We Talk about Israel?: A Guide for the Curious, Confused, and Conflicted

... supreme­ly nuanced ... broad in scope yet detailed in analy­sis, thought-pro­vok­ing for the well-informed yet acces­si­ble for the new learn­er. It is an impor­tant and need­ed addi­tion to the books on the subject ... Sokatch is remark­ably deft at hold­ing mul­ti­ple com­pet­ing nar­ra­tives at once. The detailed prose moves quick­ly, begin­ning with suc­cinct expla­na­tions of Israel’s his­to­ry, from ancient to present ... Sokatch does not shy away from assess­ing dif­fi­cult sub­jects ... The sub­jects are con­tro­ver­sial, but the argu­ments are well craft­ed and sup­port­ed, leav­ing noth­ing out, and also much room for dis­course. The illus­tra­tions by Christo­pher Nox­on high­light key sto­ries and cap­ture their emo­tions. The side notes through­out, cou­pled with the exten­sive glos­sary and bib­li­og­ra­phy at the end, pro­vide ample oppor­tu­ni­ties for con­tin­ued study ... If you’re look­ing for a detailed, nuanced con­ver­sa­tion about Israel, this is the book for you. It is an impor­tant addi­tion to the exist­ing lex­i­con, with a fresh and hon­est voice, a crit­i­cal eye, care­ful atten­tion to detail, great con­cern for the humans at the heart of the sto­ry, and the resolve that one should not give up hope for a peace­ful res­o­lu­tion (or res­o­lu­tions), some­how, someday.

... an engaging and evenhanded, if cursory, history of the conflict, from its 19th-century origins to the most recent mini-war between Israel and Hamas in May 2021. He also addresses some common and contentious questions such as whether Israel can be both a Jewish state and a democracy and if its rule over the Palestinians is akin to apartheid. Sokatch’s answers to all these questions can be summed up in two words: It’s complicated ... While this may disappoint readers seeking clear, definitive answers, and might seem evasive to some, Sokatch stresses the need for nuance and casts both Israelis and Palestinians as 'righteous victims,' a phrase he borrows from the Israeli historian Benny Morris. Throughout the book, Sokatch interweaves the story of his own evolving, sometimes agonizing, relationship with Israel, recounting his adolescent adoration and then his heady optimism living in Israel during the Oslo peace process.

A self-described liberal American Jew earnestly and humanely parses the Palestinian-Israeli conflict ... a two-part narrative enhanced by Noxon’s illustrations ... An optimistic, evenhanded instruction manual, with upbeat illustrations, for anyone trying to understand the conflict.