The Lemon Tree Review by the Cobb Law Group

Instead of our usual blog posting about Georgia’s Mechanics and Materialmen’s Lien Laws, we thought we do something different!

I recently finished a book that I can’t wait to tell you about.  Typically, my reading are pretty broad and include the classics, contemporary literature, history (before WWI), and works by friends.  I have a tendancy to stay away from current events, recent history, and politics.  So imagine my surprise when I read and thoroughly enjoyed The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East by Sandy Tolan.   Although it’s non-fiction, the story is very compelling and written in a way that mimics the best story-telling tactics.  It’s about a Palestinian family forced to leave behind their village, their house, and a lemon tree planted in their back yard and the subsequent Jewish family who moves into the house, and nurtures the lemon tree under the assumption that the house was abandoned.

Growing up, my Father often watched the evening news on television; frequently, there was reference to Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Egypt, their various leaders and political factions.  Although I may had thought as though I understood a particular incident, I didn’t. As I grew older, I’m ashamed to say, I never grasped anything more than a cursory understanding of the events which occurred/occur in the Middle East.  I am delighted to say that The Lemon Tree changed all of that!

It’s written well enough to be a “page-turner”, but it is researched and filled with background, history and current events from the area.  The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East explains many of the “whys” and “whos” and “whens” that I encounter whenever there is a reference to a prior event.  This book is enjoyable enough to be a “beach-read” but it’s serious enough for any avid historian, sociologist, or political scientist.  Check it out and let me know what you think about it!