Exile by Richard North Patterson
Rating: GREAT!
Exile was interesting, well written, compelling and very long- it was over 700 pages. I actually started reading Exile over 2 years ago, got half way through and then just got side tracked with other books, grad school and my crazy/fantastic life. Then when I was packing for the Peace Corps, I found it and decided to take it to finish. And I am very glad I did.
I am not even going to try to summarize the book…as it is extremely detailed. But it revolves around an Palestinian mother accused of assassinating the Prime Minister of Israel and the Jewish lawyer who defends her.
Besides it being a great story, what makes the Exile so interesting is all the information about the Middle East and specifically the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, which has been going on for decades, that is interwoven into the lives of the characters. The author does a good job of painting an accurate and balanced picture of the conflict.
Although I do not claim to know all that much about the past or current situation between the Israelis and Palestinians, I do know this much: That both the Israelis and Palestinians have a great amount of hate and disregard for the other. That both justify their cause with their religion. That both, yes both the Israelis and Palestinians have engaged in acts of horrific violence and terrorism against the other. And that the fighting and violence and oppression and death has gone on far too long, allowing generations of Israelis and Palestinians to know nothing else.
So read Exile. Or learn a little more about what’s happening over there. Because what happens “over there” has a direct impact on what happens in other parts of the world, including the U.S.
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