A Senseless, Squalid War: Voices from Palestine 1945–1948

A Senseless, Squalid War makes a dramatic and original contribution to our understanding of one of the most deep-rooted and controversial international problems that continues to baffle and bedevil us to this day. The troubles in Palestine between the end of the Second World War and the declaration of the state of Israel on May 14, 1948 ruptured Middle Eastern history and left an indelible mark on the modern world. Chronicling in gripping detail this critical period that led, for the Jews, to the establishment of their national homeland, and, for the Palestinians, to their Nakba—or "catastrophe"—this book gives powerful expression to all those who took part in these stirring events: Britons, Jews and Arabs alike. The book draws on a rich medley of official documents, private papers, biographies, memoirs, diaries, letters, newspapers, novels, songs, plays, and reminiscences. It vividly reconstructs the attitudes and experiences of the many diverse participants, be they foot-soldiers or generals, hawks or doves, politicians or diplomats, dissidents, terrorists, writers, teachers, or simply men and women on the street, each voice telling its own story, woven into a compelling historical narrative that shifts seamlessly from one level of experience to another.