Missing from `best’ list
I grieve that Jim Lynch’s “The Highest Tide” was not on your best-of-the-year list for fiction (Books, Dec. 10).
Pete Speer, Mt. Prospect
Review lacks balance
I’d like to comment on Ron Grossman’s book review of President Jimmy Carter’s important new book, “Palestine Peace Not Apartheid” (Books, Dec. 24).
I found Grossman’s review not very useful, because it doesn’t really tell potential readers enough about the actual contents of the book. Instead, while claiming evenhandedness, the review is quite critical of Carter’s humane approach and mostly amounts to a diatribe supporting and justifying Israeli government positions versus the Palestinians.
In fact, Grossman expends way too much review space in presenting a very one-sided view of the historical and current political situation in Israel and Palestine, largely supporting the Israeli government position of harsh domination over the Palestinian people while taking over more and more land from the suffering Palestinians in the militarily occupied territories.
Near the end of the review, Grossman writes:
“Carter’s book, then, is hardly a balanced account. The Israelis’ sins are writ large, the Arabs’ soft-pedaled.”
In this statement, Grossman is actually presenting what amounts to an inverted evaluation of his own review, and we can with considerable justification state that “Grossman’s book review, then, is hardly a balanced account. The Arabs’ sins are writ large, the Israelis’ soft-pedaled.”
Allow me to suggest that a more balanced review of [the book] should appear in a future [edition of the] Tribune.
Caroline Herzenberg, Chicago
I am writing to express my deep disappointment in your editorial judgement. So, you really think that (a) Ron Grossman is an expert on the Palestine question, (b) that Grossman is capable of writing an evenhanded review, especially of such an outstanding book, which is reshaping America’s perception of this issue. Both premises are absolutely wrong.
Grossman lacks any pretense to fairness when it comes to the Palestinian-Israeli issue. I can assure you that not only Palestinian-Israeli experts will scoff at his review but that most people will not even read it.
I had always hoped that despite the skewed editorials in your esteemed paper, at least the literary section or the Magazine would do a better job of representing both sides of this volatile issue. Unless, of course, the only reason this review made the pages of your paper is the fact that Grossman is on your staff.
Congratualtions for achieving another milestone on the road of the general deception of the American people.
Ghada Talhami, Evanston
Editor’s note: Ghada Talhami is D.K. Pearsons professor of politics and chair of the international relations program at Lake Forest College. Her latest book is “Palestinian Refugees: Pawns to Political Actors.”
