There is always a time between the concepts of the present and forever which is inscribed in our remembrance. It is the beauty of memory which enables us to transcend and live within this truth. “Rest in My Shade” (Interlink Books, 2018) explores this reality through an illustrated poem about roots and Palestinian collective memory….
Category: Book Review
BOOK REVIEW: Hamas and the Media – politics and strategy
Wael Abdelal’s informative treatise, “Hamas and the Media: politics and strategy” draws upon the issue of counter-hegemony to portray the relevance and importance of resistance media, in this case, the role which the media has played to further the politics of Hamas. The counter-hegemonic narrative is paramount in this study. As the author describes, the…
BOOK REVIEW: The Palestinian Novel from 1948 to the present
Bashir Abu-Manneh’s detailed study “The Palestinian novel: From 1948 to the present” (Cambridge University Press, 2016) combines the historical processes of Palestinian memory and postcolonial and literary theory in a manner which brings the various narratives and experiences of Palestinians to the fore. There is a unifying factor identified by the author – dispossession –…
BOOK REVIEW: Mahmoud Darwish. Literature and the politics of Palestinian identity
Far from accentuating the glorification that is synonymous with Mahmoud Darwish and his beautiful poetry, the new biography “Mahmoud Darwish: literature and the politics of Palestinian identity” by Muna Abu Eid (I.B. Tauris, 2016) is a competent exercise in revealing the intricacies of Palestinian collective memory combined with the complex persona of the man himself….
BOOK REVIEW:White City Black City. Architecture and War in Tel Aviv and Jaffa
The interlinked histories of Jaffa and Tel Aviv are dissected and analysed diligently in Sharon Rotbard’s White City Black City: Architecture and War in Tel Aviv and Jaffa (Pluto Press 2015). Colonial narratives have stipulated the supremacy of Tel Aviv’s recent history, demonstrating how geography can be altered by history, namely through both conservation and…
BOOK REVIEW: Popular Protest in Palestine: the uncertain future of unarmed resistance
A comprehensive and detailed work, “Popular Protest in Palestine: the uncertain future of unarmed resistance” (Pluto Press 2015) provides a historical overview of Palestinian activism and popular resistance. It weaves the narrative up to the present and portrays the cycle which has contributed to the spasmodic visibility which, unfortunately, has resulted in fragmentation, despite the…
BOOK REVIEW Zionism and its Discontents: A Century of Radical Dissent in Israel/Palestine
Contemporary perspectives of class struggle, the anti-colonial and anti-imperialist struggle in Palestine have been thoroughly discussed in Ran Greenstein’s book, “Zionism and its Discontents: A century of radical dissent in Israel/Palestine”. Presenting an analysis of prominent movements involved in the challenge to the Zionist settler-colonial project, the book discusses four main political movements within their…
BOOK REVIEW: Indigenous (In)justice: human rights law and Bedouin Arabs in the Naqab/Negev
Within Israel’s imperialist-supported colonial expansion, the issue of Bedouin in the Naqab remains largely on the periphery, despite its centrality to the wider context of ramifications pertaining to the colonising of land and the Palestinian indigenous population. The lack of visibility is evident in the historical portrayal of hostile narratives – a trend recurring in…
BOOK REVIEW: Urbicide in Palestine. Spaces of Oppression and Resilience.
“The contemporary military urbanisation is about spatial engineering and reorganisation via complex surveillance and control and in many cases via the lethal devastation of cities.” Nurhan Abujidi’s defining introduction to “Urbicide in Palestine: spaces of oppression and resilience” (Routledge, 2014) sets the foundation from which hegemonic dictates regarding destruction are unravelled, revealing complex and intertwining…
BOOK REVIEW: Ingrid Olderock. La Mujer de los Perros
“In this type of investigation, objectivity is non-existent.” Alejandro Solís Muñoz’s statement in his prologue to “Ingrid Olderock: la mujer de los perros” necessitates reflection. Objectivity, in the wrong hands, is a weapon of normalising violence and human rights violations. The end result would be normalising the dictatorship and its atrocities. It would also be…
RAMONA WADI 