Defending Israel: The Story of My Relationship with My Most Challenging Client Hardcover – September 3, 2019

Good

This is a superb book written by someone who has led a very interesting life. It provides an inside look into Mr. Dershowitz's meetings with all US and Israeli leaders over the past 40 years, giving invaluable insight into the historical events that led Israel to where it is today. The timeline of events is chronicled, along with the rising anti-Semitism of the "progressives". At a time when the Alt-left has become just as dangerous as the Alt-right, this book is a must-read for all -- most importantly, liberal college students who are woefully uninformed about the historical events that caused the Palestinian refugee "crisis", and the many offers for peace extended by Israel but turned down by the Arab leaders. Mr. Dershowitz's extensive legal knowledge is pervasive throughout the book, as he assesses Israel's legal system, and concludes that Israel has an exemplary record of concern for civil liberties and respect for the rule of law. He provides unbiased and objective analysis, and readily notes areas where he disagrees with Israeli policy. I highly recommend this book to all!

Although Dershowitz is at times a bit rambling, this is an excellent story of his relationship with the leaders of both the US and Israel, and his efforts on to defend Israel and the Jewish people. If you wish to defend Israel, you will find excellent arguments and information, all well-documented. The only fault I have with this book is his omission of the '4th D' that enemies of Israel use. He lists:1)Double-Standard applied to the State of Israel.2)Demonization of the State of Israel.3)De-legitimization of the State of Israel.The 4th one is the aim of Israel's enemies:Destruction of the State of Israel.

I started reading this book from the library before the updated version came out. But I decided to buy it by the second or third chapter. It's surprisingly hard to get the story on American-Israeli relations without understanding what Alan Dershowitz has done to defend Israel since the 1960s. He's a professor at Harvard, a Constitutional lawyer, and a friend of Bibi (Netanyahu).Most people mistake the author for a right winger because he defended Trump. It's unfortunate that took that he got so involved in other issues with Trump, because, he says in the intro, Dershowitz wants to help convince the left to return to defending Israel. To do that, he gives a chronological recounting of his involvement with the defense of Israel from the times of Civil Rights until today.The story is extremely interesting and everyone should read it. It's full of surprises, some good, some bad. I love Jimmy Carter, but I'm appalled by what I read about him, since I've always been, at least in my mind, pro-Jewish. It won't stop me respecting him, but wow. It also thawed my knee jerk feelings about Republicans. I think that's a healthy non-polarizing effect.Alan Dershowitz in this book attempts to correct many fallacies.* Zionism isn't Jewish supremacy, but 'Israel is the state of the Jewish people.'* There is no ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, population of Palestinians in Israel is rising.* There is no "open air prison" there's a wall for protection and in preparation for a two state solution. The border with Egypt is not under Israel's control.* Why moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem was right.* How many times the Palestinians have been offered a state and they refused. Yes Abbas too, refused. And what he said, to the author, for why.And much more.The only reasons the book didn't get five stars are, that first, he engages in some shameless self promotion and sleight of hand such as claiming that he was accidentally at Mar a Lago when Trump approached him to help with his Israel policy. That was such an obvious misstatement that it was possibly intended to be a joke.He has indeed helped several US Presidents make Israel policy, and been involved in Israeli policy as well. However, I kept being struck with the feeling that he wasn't telling the whole truth about how things came to happen, that I was hearing a "neat and clean" version of events.I definitely need to read more about Israel from other authors. I'm looking for an author who lives in Israel for my next book about Israel. Maybe a history with maps. I spent a lot of time googling for maps of different time periods and the map of Israel has changed a lot.The obviously wrong protesters on such a large scale were the final straw that made me want to understand this issue in detail. I think our politicians have been kicking this can down the road too long. And every road to understanding goes through Alan Dershowitz, whether you like him or not. So if you want the carnage to stop, please start somewhere, like right here with this book.

Dershowitz gives the history of Israel from it's beginnings and explains a lot of things that many of us did not know. I don't always agree with Dershowitz, but this book is an excellent read.

This is a must read book for anyone who supports Israel or is concerned by the resurgence of anti-Antisemitism. Dershowitz provides a comprehensive history of the middle east in an easy-to-read style.He is absolutely brilliant.

My father-in-law lived this book. If you're interested in Israel and the authors experience s, you will get a lot out reading this book.

I have learned so much from reading this book. I also learned much about Dershowitz.

Quality as expected, exactly as advertised.

AWESOME 🤓