This book blew all my expectations away a thousand times over. It should be required reading in history classes. For starters, this book does not only cover Palestine and Israel, but also touches on greater Middle East and greater world politics and events. Secondly, it was spectacularly well written. It opened with an introduction giving a broad but not overwhelming overview of the topic, and a clear thesis statement regarding the six declarations of war that the book is organized around. It also included an explanation of the author’s personal connection to the issue, which I found added a deeper emotional layer to the writing. As for the following six parts, each one was true to its focus, though it also touched on the years between in broad strokes so the reader could get the fullest picture. I do wish for some chapters there had been more maps, especially when major shifts took place, but it was possible to visualize. Overall, I found the language easy to digest despite the tough topic. I sped through the chapters, completely abandoning my reading schedule to keep learning with every page. As for the conclusion, it wrapped things up perfectly with a reiteration of the thesis and the six chapters, as well as looking into the future with some possible paths for resolution. This part was difficult for me, emotionally, to read given current events and reading how the author warned about this possibility while trying to stay positive. But overall this was an excellent book that I highly recommend to all.