About the Author

Dore Gold, a former UN representative for Israel, served as foreign policy adviser to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Ambassador Gold earned his PhD in international relations and Middle East studies from Columbia University. He lives in Jerusalem with his wife and children.

Wanda McCaddon (a.k.a. Nadia May or Donada Peters) has narrated well over six hundred titles for major audiobook publishers, has earned numerous Earphones Awards, and was named a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine.

Reviews

This exhaustively researched book by a former Israeli ambassador to the U.N. (Hatred's Kingdom) reads like an informed diatribe recounting the 3,000-year history of Jerusalem, from its origins in Davidic Israel through the Islamic conquests and Crusades, to its central place in Arab-Israeli peace negotiations and global religious consciousness. While meticulously detailing the role of the Holy City in the evolution of Judaism, Christianity and Islam and the modern diplomatic battle for its custody, Gold is far from impartial. He displays an intense repudiation of fundamentalist Islam, and the perceived ineptitude and ingratitude of the West toward Israel, which he considers the only legitimate savior of the city. Warning of the apocalypse, he concludes that today's Jerusalem is threatened by the "evil wind" of Islamic fundamentalism; if redivided, he argues, the precious city will be the next great victim of global jihad. Comprehensive and cogent, this book may be a helpful resource to anyone interested in the historical and theological antecedents to today's political quagmire. However, the spiteful, defensive tone diminishes an otherwise fascinating history. Christians and Muslims alike will find his argument disquieting, as Gold repeatedly devalues the religious authenticity of their claim to the city. (Jan.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.