No Room for Small Dreams: Courage, Imagination and the Making of Modern Israel

In the final book from Peres (Ben Gurion: A Political Life), completed only weeks before his death in 2016 at the age of 93, the Israeli founding father and Nobel Peace Prize winner takes a moving look at the remarkable arc of his life. Despite the humble circumstances of his upbringing in Poland, Peres came to play a prominent role in the Zionist movement, the establishment of the state of Israel, its development of a robust self-defense capacity, and the struggle for peace with its Arab neighbors. Even readers familiar with the general contours of Peres’s life story will find surprises, as in the pivotal influence he had, at just 23, on Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion’s strategizing. He offers many other behind-the-scenes looks at key historical events, including the 1956 Arab-Israeli War, the creation of the Israeli aviation industry, and the daring hostage rescue at Entebbe, for which he was the most forceful advocate. Peres remained a clear-eyed optimist until the end, notwithstanding the assassination of his political adversary turned ally, Yitzhak Rabin, and the lack of progress in achieving peace with the Palestinians. Comforting those who view the current situation as bereft of hope, Peres offers his own achievements as evidence that the seemingly impossible can become reality. (Sept.)