"Years after photographer William Harrington participates in a 1920s project to redesign Jerusalem with British parks against a backdrop of growing nationalist unrest, his revelations about long-buried secrets transform the life of his former employer's daughter." --

Great Britain ruled Palestine from 1917 to 1948. The British presence replaced 500 years of Turkish control and led to the State of Israel, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1998. The British brought Palestine into the twentieth century. When they arrived the country lay in a Levantine nirvana; by the time they left it had become the arena for one of the century's major international conflicts. Among the personalities who shape this narrative...

Draws on newly available documents from the National Archives in Britain to chronicle the historical events and key campaigns that led to the creation of Israel.

This is a dual narrative of Israeli and Palestinian history, where readers can track each against the other, noting both where they differ as well as where they correspond. This format reveals surprising juxtapositions and allows readers to consider and process the very different viewpoints and logic of each side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.