Book Festival: Oren Kessler and Uri Kaufman

Join us for a thought-provoking program to discuss important moments in Israel’s 75-year history that have shaped the country and the Middle East. The evening will feature author Oren Kessler and his book Palestine 1936: The Great Revolt and the Roots of the Middle East Conflict and author Uri Kaufman and his book Eighteen Days in October: The Yom Kippur War and How It Created the Modern Middle East.

Eighteen Days in October: The Yom Kippur War and How It Created the Modern Middle East by Uri Kaufman

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War, a conflict that shaped the modern Middle East. Israel came shockingly close to defeat, panicky cabinet members debated using nuclear weapons and Prime Minister Golda Meir resigned in disgrace. With the perspective of half a century, the war can be seen as a pivotal victory for Israel. The first book to rely on recently declassified information, it contains powerful arguments for rethinking this critical moment in history.

Palestine 1936: The Great Revolt and the Roots of the Middle East Conflict by Oren Kessler

In 1936 the Arab population of Palestine revolted against the Jewish population and the British Mandate authorities.  Lasting 3 years, the rebellion stemmed from questions of how to divide the land and how to deal with the influx of Jewish people.  Costing thousands of lives, it set the stage for today’s Middle East conflict. In his debut book, journalist Oren Kessler probes the roots of the Palestine-Israel conflict to show eight decades later, today’s issues echo those of the past.

Inspiring and entertaining, the Ann and Stephen Kaufman Jewish Book & Arts Festival annually delivers a variety of opportunities for the community to learn and experience Jewish literary, culture and performing arts. The Festival is one of the city’s leading cultural and literary events, attracting a large and varied audience of all ages and is recognized as one of the largest Jewish Book & Arts Festivals in the nation.