Jerusalem: The Biography (edition 2012)

At times a surprisingly violent read that I brought on the spur of the moment, mostly on the strength of my love of another of the author's works: Stalin, court of the Red Tsar. Much to my surprise I have to say I don't regret this for one moment.

I was dimly aware of the importance of the city in world history but only once it was all laid out in this tomb of a book did I realize just how it really has in many ways truly been the centre of the world. Many names from pre history you may have only heard of casually will be happily fleshed out, very often ending with a bloody battle and/or the odd outbreak of compromise and good sense. Sadly not quite enough of the later.

Fun fact for British readers: A man called 'Thomas Cook' acted as a travel agent in 1869 taking a party pilgrims to the holy land, creating modern tourism and the package holiday. ( )

Another impressive work by Mr. Montefiore, detailed the extremely long and vivid history of one of the world's most famous cities into a very readable and flowing history, from King David, to David Ben-Gurion, and beyond. ( )

Jerusalem truly is the Rocky of cities. It almost hurts to read about how many times it was conquered and destroyed. Situated at a crossroads between Egypt and the Fertile Crescent, it suffered the invasions from both sides and later from invaders from across the sea. Having been at the center of the medieval world, it reverted to a sleepy minor town that lived on more in memory. The Zionist project as well as the importance of the Suez canal revived interest in Jerusalem, a city promised to too many people and filled with stones of too much meaning. The 20th century saw the rise and return of Jerusalem to international prominence which also triggered new waves of destruction and expulsions. Simon Sebag Montefiore's great history of the great city ends much too early. A wonderful if tragic read. ( )

This book undertakes an ambitious project: to tell the very complicated history of Jerusalem, which in some ways, is the history of the world. As in biblical times, we still see the interplay of myth and truth in the world today.

The author has done a great deal of research. The book is full of entertaining anecdotes that spice it up (if anyone was having kinky or extramarital sex, it is duly noted). In spite of that, I found it somewhat tedious: this happened, and then this happened and then this....without much context.

At my university courses in political economy, we were shown that the root cause of most (if not all) wars could be traced to ecnomic interests. In the case of Jerusalem, I can't make that link. Instead, I see the darker side of religion. As Mr. Montefiore notes, "not one of the three faiths ever gained Jerusalem without the sword."

The author has said that he hopes that telling the history of Jerusalem with increase inter-faith tolerance. But as I read this book, I felt a sense of sadness -- his hope is, unfortunately, not supported by his text. There is nothing in this book that makes me think things in Jerusalem will ever change. ( )

I borrowed this from the library as I wanted to know more after reading a novel set partly in Jerusalem. This books packs a lot of information, but I found the constant flow of new names, etc. a bit overwhelming to take in at the moment, so I will just browse some parts.

No star rating.