The Human Scale

A Novel

De: Lawrence Wright

Narrado por: Peter Ganim

In this sweeping, timely thriller, a Palestinian American FBI agent teams up with a hardline Israeli cop to solve the murder of the Israeli police chief in Gaza—from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Looming Tower and The End of October.

"A layered tale of intrigue and betrayal."—Geraldine Brooks, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of March and Horse

Tony Malik, a half-Irish, half-Arab FBI agent based in New York, specializes in tracking money from drug and arms deals. His life takes a dramatic turn when a long-term relationship ends and his job hangs in the balance. Amid personal turmoil, Malik becomes intrigued by his Palestinian father's past. He decides to visit his ancestral homeland for his niece's wedding, accepting a seemingly simple FBI assignment along the way.

Upon arrival in the West Bank, Malik's world is upended when the Israeli police chief is murdered. Initially a suspect, Malik's investigative prowess soon earns him a place in the Israeli investigation. At the heart of the story is Malik's complex relationship with Yossi, the hardline anti-Arab Israeli police officer leading the case. They must learn to trust each other because, as they move closer to solving the case, they realize there is no one else they can trust on either side.

Lawrence Wright populates the novel with richly drawn characters: Yossi's daughter studying in Paris, Malik's niece whose wedding is shattered by violence, her peacenik fiancé with ties to Hamas, and a cast of religious leaders, corrupt cops, and militants on both sides. Through these intersecting lives, Wright weaves an intricate tapestry that culminates in the devastating Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

More than a thriller, Wright's novel explores the complex history between Israel and Palestine, revealing the tragic human scale of this long-standing conflict and offering a nuanced perspective on a tragedy that continues to shape the region and the world.

Hopeless

America has the pleasure of not knowing - The awareness the author brings into his story is great.

The story was well woven into history with unexpected twists and turns

Love the backdrop, Paris,the Negev, and the needless chaos, destruction and waste is disturbing . Seems alive and dreamlike simultaneously perhaps a peaceful outcome before the second coming?

The understanding of the impossibility of safety or peace without an end to the occupation and the retaliations.

An engrossing story of fiction that closely follows the very real tragedy that is Israel and Palestine. The characters are very human,with complex loyalties, foibles, passions and heart. The author does a fairly balanced job of tracing the enmity back to the 180Os and then farther back still, to the historic sameness of the Jews and Muslims, sharing DNA, food, customs. He is clearly a partisan of peace, while acknowledging the tremendous barriers. With a tilt to Palestinian allegiance, he is however squarely anti-Hamas. A tour de force of a book.

Excellent writing!

A clever mix of fact and fiction that will take you deep into the conflict, beyond the headlines and prejudices.

ambiguity of situation, conflicted characters, haunting, search for happiness where there is no.peace.

characterizations, fair representation of both sides of the conflict, why both sides of the conflict feel entitled to the land.