Israel: A History

by Anita Shapira

Overview

Winner of the National Jewish Book Award in History (2012)
Winner of the Azrieli Institute Award for Best Book in Israel Studies in English or French (2014)

Written by one of Israel’s most notable scholars, this volume provides a breathtaking history of Israel from the origins of the Zionist movement in the late nineteenth century to the present day.

Organized chronologically, the volume explores the emergence of Zionism in Europe against the backdrop of relations among Jews, Arabs, and Turks, and the earliest pioneer settlements in Palestine under Ottoman rule. Weaving together political, social, and cultural developments in Palestine under the British mandate, Shapira creates a tapestry through which to understand the challenges of Israeli nation building, including mass immigration, shifting cultural norms, the politics of war and world diplomacy, and the creation of democratic institutions and a civil society. References to contemporary diaries, memoirs, and literature bring a human dimension to this narrative history of Israel from its declaration of independence in 1948 through successive decades of waging war, negotiating peace, and building a modern state with a vibrant society and culture.

Based on archival sources and the most up-to-date scholarly research, this authoritative history is a must-read for anyone with a passionate interest in Israel. Israel: A History will be the gold standard in the field for years to come.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781611686180
Publisher:	Brandeis University Press
Publication date:	08/05/2014
Series:	Schusterman Series in Israel Studies Series
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	528
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

ANITA SHAPIRA is a professor emerita at Tel Aviv University. An internationally acclaimed scholar with a special interest in social and cultural history, Shapira has published pathbreaking studies on the history of Zionism, Jewish-Arab relations, and the state of Israel.

Table of Contents

List of Maps
Acknowledgments
Author’s Note
Part I: 1881–1918, Zionism: Ideology and Praxis
The Emergence of the Zionist Movement
Jews, Turks, Arabs: First Encounters in the Land
Part II: 1918–1948, A State-in-the-Making
Palestine under British Rule
Immigration and Settlement during the Mandate Period
The Yishuv as an Emerging State
The Yishuv: Society, Culture, and Ethos
Part III: 1948–1967, Nation Building
The War of Independence, 1947–1949
The Creation of Israeli Democracy
State Building: Economy, Development, and Big Government
The Great Aliya: Mass Immigration
Culture and Norms in an Evolving Society
Politics, Peace, and War
Part IV: 1967–1977, A Decade of War
Six Days That Changed the Middle East
The Age of Euphoria, 1967–1973
The Yom Kippur War, 1973
Israeli Society after the Yom Kippur War
Part V: 1977–2000, Peace, War, and Indecision
Begin in Power
The Stalemate Years: A Changing Israeli Identity, 1984–1990
The Decade of Hope, 1990–2000
An Interim Summary
Index

Editorial Reviews

“[A]n indispensable guide. . . . The author is at her best focusing on economic, social, and culture history—she makes deft use of Hebrew literature to illuminate her points, and she succinctly captures the zeitgeist of the times.”—Publishers Weekly

“Shapira’s Israel has many strengths. . . . That go hand in hand with her rapid, suggestive illumination of themes.”—Jewish Review of Books

“A fascinating new one-volume history of Israel by the eminent Israeli historian Anita Shapira explains Arab thinking about partition back in 1947 and the many other unexpected and real events that have comprised Israel’s history from the beginnings of the Zionist movement in the 1890s through the second intifada in 2001. Unlike other histories that often tell Israel’s story by jumping from one war to the next, this one, called “Israel: A History” (Brandeis), captures the nation’s diversity and cultural richness along with its existential struggles.”—Jewish Week

“This is surely a much-needed primer for an English-language audience that is often unaware of the intricacies of the country’s social past, knowing only about the battles and intifadas that seem to make up its history. . . . Shapira’s accessible survey of Israeli history provides a thought-provoking text for those unfamiliar with the Jewish state.”—Jerusalem Post

“Shapira has written what is in many respects an important, exhaustive and richly thoughtful march through the annals of Zionism.”—Financial Times

“The best book in English on Israel’s inner workings... Highly recommended.”—Choice

“Shapira’s opening chapter, on Herzl and the evolution of Zionism, is by itself worth the price of admission... This is what’s best about Israel: A History: Here, we finally have a history that enables the reader to make sense of the arcana of the political and social ideology of the Yishuv, and then of the state... Israel: A History is for everybody: scholar, student, and general reader. The book will be most valuable to those readers who already know something, and some scholars will yearn for more comprehensive annotation. But Shapira has done something that most surveys do not accomplish: Shapira’s “How?” and “Why?” put us right there, in the historical moment, and answer for us not only “How?” and “Why?” but also, “What was it like?”—Forward

"Shapira sustains her readers' interest as she takes them along a road full of twists of destiny that unfold in the miraculous story called Israel."—Jewish Book World

From the Publisher