THE FUTURE IS PEACE

Hope amid trauma.

In this bighearted travelogue, friends and peace activists Abu Sarah, a Palestinian whose brother died from injuries suffered in Israeli custody, and Inon, an Israeli whose parents were killed by Hamas, explore the region’s militarized landscape and learn about the experiences of others impacted by decades of violence. Their eight-day journey through Israeli and Palestinian communities is an effort to topple “walls of ignorance and hatred,” writes Inon. In Jerusalem, the West Bank, and elsewhere, they recount fraught local history and share their experiences as socially conscious entrepreneurs whose work in the tourism and hospitality industries aims to foster “connection and peacebuilding.” Though their prose occasionally reads like ad copy for their respective businesses, their generosity sets a remarkable example. Forgiving his parents’ murderers “has set me free,” Inon writes. Their leaders have failed them, and cross-cultural “co-resistance” is the most promising way forward, Abu Sarah writes. They don’t break new ground with their accounts of the onerous laws and border security zones that dominate Palestinian life, but as a vessel for the devastating stories told by those they speak to along the way, their book is invaluable. An Israeli tells them that during Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, his two youngest grandsons survived by playing dead alongside their murdered siblings and parents. A Palestinian doctor recalls that during an Israeli strike on Gaza, he saw a woman sitting with her dead child’s body, “just waiting for more family members to come so they could go bury him.” Others recount atrocities at holy sites and military checkpoints, and the security clampdowns that followed. Not even the authors’ many mentions of their business ventures diminish the potency of the important stories they share.

Powerfully demonstrates that fellowship can bridge seemingly intractable divides.