As a child I read many books. I grew up in Veghel. It had (at that time) a small library. Every week you could find me there, reading all available books. Reading is a passion I still have. Weekly I read 1 or 2 books. When I grew older history and the world wars got my special interest. I read novels, but non-fiction is my favourite genre.

In 2011 a colleague brought along the book “Een bijzondere relatie: het conflict Israël-Palestina nader bekeken 1897 – 1993 (a special relationship: the Israel-Palestine conflict reviewed in more detail 1897 – 1993)” of Egbert Talens. It was published in 2005. I was overwhelmed! Egbert Talens created a balanced storey about Israël and the zionism, based on a lot of literature. Egbert Talens was not a historian, he was a gymnastic teacher. As a volenteer he worked for the UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency) in the Middle East for 33 years. 

This book didn’t get many attention in the Dutch media. That’s too bad because I think it is one of the best Dutch books about this subject. It inspired me to read more and more books about Palestine and it led to my trip to the West Bank in 2018.

Curious about al the Dutch books I read about Israël/Palestina? You can find the titles HERE.