Israel, a History

By Martin Gilbert

At first glance Martin Gilbert's "Israel, a History" seems like a quite promising read. At a time when Israel is experiencing both a crucial anniversary and a crucial historical period, the release of a major historical work covering its existence is a timely and significant event. The cover illustrated with photos of major figures in Israeli history and reading simply "Israel, a History" suggests a monumental work that will be able to say some very important things about the State of Israel.

Instead "Israel, a History" is a strange lifeless cross between a mishmash of encyclopedic date and place recitations and a coffee table book. Gilbert piles on page after page and chapter after chapter of almost random recitations of historical incidents combined with biographical quotes from a few selected individuals to create one incoherent whole. His focus in this retelling is often on the incredibly minor and unimportant while neglecting other major events that were occurring at the same time. There is little original or innovative to be found here and what Gilbert has really done is create an encyclopedia entry on the State of Israel that runs on for hundreds of pages.

The prose style is tired like a bored professor delivering a lecture for the hundredth time whose content he remembers but whose order and meaning escapes him. Gilbert's prose style tends to run to the flat and uninspired and this only makes the basic flaws of the book far more noticeable and exhausting. It is too annoying, pointless and tiring to be read by the casual reader and offers little of interest to the experienced amateur or professional historian already familiar with the history Gilbert retells. Gilbert does have an excellent reputation as a historian but "Israel, a History" is a work too fundamentally flawed in basic ways to add any credit to his "resume."

Former Israel Prime Minister Shimon Peres is acknowledged by the author as having played a significant role in the creation of "Israel, a History," which may help to explain at least in part why significant figures on the right are almost completely ignored. Zev Jabotinsky is nearly ignored and is only mentioned briefly and almost in passing. The Irgun is only recalled as a recitation of terrorist acts and Gilbert doesn't seem remotely interested in looking at its internal life or that of the Stern Gang. Figures on the pre-statehood right tend to be portrayed as dangerous violence prone lunatics uninterested in anything but killing innocent British and Arab civilians. Gilbert not only forgoes looking beyond the usual party line but avoids any examination of these groups and avoids historical mention of them that doesn't portray them as unambiguously bad.

Gilbert's fixation on certain Israeli historical figures dominate major portions of the book and quotations from their biographies can run on for as long as a page. "Israel, a History" is not so much as exploration as a retreat from exploration. It has nothing to offer and no real appeal beyond the clustered range of statements treated as facts that can be found in any encyclopedia entry. As a book it makes a good present to someone who you know won't read it as it has a quite impressive cover. In the case that you have received it as a present it makes a good paperweight, doorstop or can serve well in any role in which its physical attributes are more important than its content.