Book cover of 1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War

Book description

Benny Morris demolishes misconceptions and provides a comprehensive history of the Israeli-Arab war of 1948

This history of the foundational war in the Arab-Israeli conflict is groundbreaking, objective, and deeply revisionist. A riveting account of the military engagements, it also focuses on the war's political dimensions. Benny Morris probes the…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

2 authors picked 1948 as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

History is often in the eye of the beholder. There are many histories, not just one. This is true in general and this statement is particularly apt when we discuss the first Arab-Israeli war. When I teach about the conflict, students ask me for an objective account of the war. My answer is that none is in existence but the closest to the truth, in my opinion, is Morris’ account. It is the best book about the war, based on maticulate survey of documents. It provides a thorough explanation of the war in each and every stage.

Morris paid a…

From Raphael's list on Israel studies.

Morris’s 1948 is regarded by leading scholars in the field as the leading work on the subject. It offers a clear chronology and astute assessment of the intersection of the war’s military and political developments. Of particular importance for Israel’s Moment is Morris’s examination of the Arab rejection of the United Nations Partition Plan as a form of Jihad inspired by religious fundamentalism, and his understanding of the interaction between the debates at the United Nations in New York and the events on the battlefield in 1947 and 1948 in Palestine and then Israel.

If you love 1948...

Book cover of These Blue Mountains

These Blue Mountains by Sarah Loudin Thomas,

A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.

German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…

Want books like 1948?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like 1948.

Browse books like 1948

Book cover of Envoy to the Promised Land: The Diaries and Papers of James G. McDonald, 1948-1951
Book cover of Jihad and Jew-Hatred: Islamism, Nazism and the Roots of 9/11
Book cover of A Safe Haven: Harry S. Truman and the Founding of Israel

Share your top 3 reads of 2025!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,366

readers submitted
so far, will you?

📚 If you like 1948, you might also like...

Book cover of The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea

The Go-Giver by John David Mann,

The Go-Giver tells the story of an ambitious young man named Joe who yearns for success. Joe is a true go-getter, though sometimes he feels as if the harder and faster he works, the further away his goals seem to be.

Desperate to land a key sale at the end…

Book cover of The Last Whaler

The Last Whaler by Cynthia Reeves,

This book is an elegiac meditation on the will to survive. Tor, a beluga whaler, and his wife, Astrid, a botanist specializing in Arctic flora, are stranded during the dark season of 1937-38 at his remote whaling station in the Svalbard archipelago when they misjudge ice conditions and fail to…

5 book lists we think you will like!