My Three Favourite Books This Year
Raphael Cohen-Almagor
Director, MESC, University of Hull; Global Fellow, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington DC; President, Association for Israel Studies; Fellow, IIAS
I was asked what three books I enjoyed reading most this year.
Raphael Cohen-Almagors 3 favorite reads in 2023
What did I love mostnbsp;about each book?
I’m
Raphael Cohen-Almagor
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Author Doer Scholar Teacher Peace and human rights activist
This list is part of the?best books of 2023.
We've asked 884 authors and super readers for their 3 favorite reads of the year.
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My favorite read in 2023…
Prophets without Honor: The 2000 Camp David Summit and the End of the Two-State Solution
By Shlomo Ben-Ami
Why did I love this book?
I very much enjoyed reading this book as it offers an eloquent account of the Israeli-Palestinian failed peace process written from a very personal perspective of the former Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs.
I have known Ben-Ami for many years, having worked for him at his Tel Aviv Center during the 1990s. I also supported his career in the Labour Party. Ben-Ami?is a sharp intellectual who is committed to peace.
Ben-Ami did his best to negotiate between Prime Minister Ehud Barak and the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Often he came up with innovative ideas designed to break many impasses along the way. However, despite his best efforts, peace remained elusive.
He writes that this book pretends to offer the most nonpartisan, comprehensive, and balanced account by an insider representing one of the parties. Indeed, the most interesting parts of the book (I and II) are those where Ben-Ami was directly involved: The discussions leading to Camp David 2000, the Clinton Parameters, and the Taba peace summit. Part III covers the years 2001-2020, during which Israel evacuated Gaza, Prime Minister Olmert negotiated peace with the Palestinian leader Abbas and Obama’s peace initiative.?
I am using this book for research on a book I am working on.
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My 2nd favorite read in 2023…
Peter Wallensteen: A Pioneer in Making Peace Researchable: With a Foreword by Jan Eliasson and a Preface by Raimo Vayrynen
By Peter Wallensteen
Why did I love this book?
Peter Wallensteen is a peace academic and activist who was involved in many initiatives to resolve conflicts. I have been following his extensive scholarship for many years.
This book is his magnum opus. Wallenstein opens this erudite and comprehensive volume with an autobiographical account of his upbringing and what brought him to make peace research the focal point of his life.?Part II deals with ethics, the use of sanctions in international relations, peace mediation, and the role of international organisations, especially the United Nations, in settling conflicts. Part III focuses on war while Part IV focuses on peace and on academic diplomacy of the kind Wallensteen was involved.
I find this to be a rich, industrious, and thoughtful book. It is a nice summery of a very impressive career. I regard Peter as one of the leading scholars in the world on peace and conflict resolution.?
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My 3rd favorite read in 2023…
From the Ashes of History: Collective Trauma and the Making of International Politics
By Adam B. Lerner
Why did I love this book?
This is the best book in international relations that I read this year.?It raises an important contribution to the literature.
In this thoughtful book, Lerner provides a new understanding and application of the "narrative identity approach" in International Relations. Combining theory with applications, Lerner studied the long-term impacts of colonialism on Indian state-building, the Holocaust in Israeli security discourses, and the role of PTSD in reimaging US foreign policy.
The book is wide-ranging, and it uncovers new grounds. It is learned and original, combining an insightful theoretical framework with fascinating case studies. To my mind, Lerner makes a compelling case for viewing historical events through a new perspective.?The theoretical framework he offers is interesting and relevant, the analysis is comprehensive and thorough, and the book is clear and coherent. I highly recommend it.?
The Hedley Bull Prize in International Relations jury, of which I was a member, has decided that Adam Lerner's book?From the Ashes of History?should receive Honourable Mentioning.
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