This year marks the start of my second decade doing this annual review of notable recently published books — and I can say without hesitation that I hope we do not face another year as bad as 2023. The savage October 7 attacks in Israel and the troubling support for Hamas across the West will forever cast a dark shadow on this year. At this moment in the history of Judeo-Christian civilization, it has never been more important to be informed, to understand the context of our current debates, and to be resolute in defending our highest ideals.
Looking back at the year, I saw that I had read a lot of books with Israel-related content even before October 7. And None Shall Make Them Afraid, by Rick Richman, and Providence and Power, by Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, are both group biographies of Jewish and Israeli leaders, showing that the combination of antisemitism, terrorism, and being forced to stand alone in a world that doesn’t care are not new conditions for the Jewish people. Palestine 1936, by Oren Kessler, demonstrates that the origins of many elements of today’s Arab–Israeli conflict date back to that eventful year, and that wholesale slaughter and other atrocities are unfortunately not a new tactic on the part of Arabs. Joseph Berger’s biography Elie Wiesel: Confronting the Silence is not about Israel, but it’s worth a look for its encapsulation of Wiesel’s impressive career, as well as its discussion of how to maintain faith in the face of horrific circumstances — something obviously relevant in the post–October 7 environment.
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