Need Book Rec's (Only!) on Israel/Palestine Conflict

[Anonymous]

I am woefully ignorant about the history of this part of the world and the current situation, and I would like to begin to become informed. Can anyone with expertise and/or interest in the subject suggest a good introduction for the neophyte, preferably not one that is extremely biased? Or, if that is not possible, can anyone recommend a good book from a "pro-Israel" perspective and another from a "pro-Palestinian" perspective? I truly hope this thread will not devole into a political fight -- I am genuinely just looking for book suggestions. When I searched "Israel Palestine" on Amazon I got over 11,000 results, so I need some guidance. TIA.

[Anonymous]

This one is old, and it's not really either pro-Israeli or pro-Palestinian. It seemed pretty balanced to me (it's been at least a decade since I read it, though).

http://www.amazon.com/History-Israeli-Palestinian-Conflict-Indiana-Islamic/dp/0253208734

[Anonymous]

Two recommendations:

For a neutral, comprehensive history: http://www.amazon.com/Righteous-Victims-Zionist-Arab-Conflict-1881-2001/dp/0679744754

For an interesting narrative through the lens of one commentator: http://www.amazon.com/Beirut-Jerusalem-Thomas-L-Friedman/dp/1250015499/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1326209060&sr=1-1

[Anonymous]

For contemporary reports by an Israeli Jew sympathetic to the suffering of Palestinians, you could read David Grossman-- he has both fiction (To the end of the land) and nonfiction (Yellow Wind, Sleeping on a Wire).

[Anonymous]

The Other Side of Israel by Susan Nathan.
Not an unbiased book by any means but an interesting look at the Palestinian citizens of Israel through the eyes of a Jewish woman who went to live in a Palestinian neighborhood. What many Americans don't realize is that there exists a level of legally and cultured-sanction segregation within Israel that we would never accept here in our own country.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0385514565/ref=wms_ohs_product