The Only Language They Understand

Forcing Compromise in Israel and Palestine

By: Nathan Thrall

Narrated by: Stephen R. Thorne

Scattered over the territory between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea lie the remnants of failed peace proposals, international summits, secret negotiations, UN resolutions, and state-building efforts. The conventional story is that these well-meaning attempts at peacemaking were repeatedly, perhaps terminally, thwarted by violence. Through a rich interweaving of reportage, historical narrative, and powerful analysis, Nathan Thrall presents a startling counterhistory. He shows that force has impelled each side to make its largest concessions, from Palestinian acceptance of a two-state solution to Israeli territorial withdrawals. This simple fact has been neglected by the world powers, which have expended countless resources on initiatives meant to diminish friction between the parties. By quashing any hint of confrontation and providing bounteous economic and military assistance, the United States and Europe have merely entrenched the conflict by lessening the incentives to end it. Thrall's important book upends the beliefs steering these failed policies, revealing how the aversion of pain, not the promise of peace, has driven compromise for Israelis and Palestinians alike.

©2017 Nathan Thrall (P)2017 Tantor

Critic reviews

"This learned and candid book is a genuine contribution to our understanding of an increasingly frightening conflict." (Leon Wieseltier)

Amazing reportage

One of the best and most concise descriptions of these Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, that it’s various episodes 

Thrall is the best writer on Israel-Palestine

An extraordinarily deep, well-informed diagnosis of the tragic political mess in Israel-Palestine. Thrall's an impeccable scholar, but he also feels the suffering the conflict is causing. This book doesn't cover everything, but it's the best source for everything it does.

Fresh take on the Isr.-Pal. impasse

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Recommend because a fresh look at why the Israeli-Palestinian peace process has been at an impasse for so long.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

The most compelling aspect of the book is its iconoclastic approach: quite the opposite of what we have been accustomed to hearing for the past 30 or so yearsת and its cogent argument to pressure both sides (and particularly the stronger one) to reach a compromise.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It certainly made me rethink my own assumptions.

Any additional comments?

The narrator massacres Hebrew and Arabic names, including those of prime ministers. Worse of all, he consistently pronounces the al-Aqsa (pronounced al-Ak' sah) Mosque (the prime Muslim holy place in Jerusalem) as the al-As' ka (hear: Alaska) Mosque, which is an insult to Muslims. One would think it would be possible for narrators to consult on the pronunciation of names and place names in advance and to get them right.