by Greg Kelly
First published 2022
Benjamin Netanyahu opens his memoir by describing how the Holocaust and Israel's founding shaped his family's mission. He and his brothers Yoni and Iddo grew up understanding that their nation remained fragile despite its hard-won independence. After studying in American high schools, all three brothers returned to Israel and joined an elite special forces unit. At twenty-two, Netanyahu was wounded during a hostage rescue from a hijacked aircraft. Four years later, his brother Yoni died leading the famous Entebbe rescue mission in Uganda. Netanyahu channels his grief into fighting international terrorism and eventually becomes Israel's longest-serving prime minister. He describes his negotiations with Presidents Clinton, Obama, and Trump, his efforts to transform Israel's economy into a technology hub, and his role in the 2020 peace agreements with four Arab nations. Netanyahu presents his personal evolution alongside Israel's dramatic history, offering direct accounts of Middle Eastern diplomacy and his confrontations with radical forces threatening his country.
Genres: biography, history, political-science, politics, autobiography, memoir, 21st-century, military-history
Vibes: emotional, fast-paced, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Israel, Middle East, Uganda, United States
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
736 pages · Hardcover · Threshold Editions
Content warnings: death, violence