Books Set in the United States: New Jersey

In the Unlikely Event, by Judy Blume (2015)

This is a novel about the events that occurred in Elizabeth, New Jersey in the 1950s when there were three plane crashes in the space of three months, beginning in December 1951 and the final crash in  February 1952.  The novel follows a young 15-year old girl and how the accidents impacted her life.  I enjoyed this book, but it fell apart near the end.

Read: September 29, 2015

4 Stars

Books Set in the Middle East: Israel

The Lemon Tree: An Arab, A Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East, by Sandy Tolan (2006)

This book purports to be the unlikely friendship between an Arab man, Bashir, and a Jewish woman, Dalia, and a house in Israel that had belonged Bashir's family before the creation of the State of Israel.  After the creation of the State of Israel, Dalia's family lived in the house.  As young adults, the two meet, when Bashir went to visit his family home.

The book made me very angry because it presented a one-sided view of the history of the State of Israel.  Even the words chosen, such as calling Israeli's "settlers" shows bias.  Nearly all Israelis depicted in the book, with the exception of Dalia and her husband, come off as being bad and uncompassionate

Read:  September 26, 2015

2 Stars