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We Just Want to Live Here: A Palestinian Teenager, an Israli Teenager -- an Unlikely Friendship
Palestinian Amal Rifa'i and Israeli Odelia Ainbinder are two teenage girls who live in the same city, yet worlds apart. They met on a student exchange program to Switzerland. Weeks after they returned, the latest, violent Intifada broke out in the fall of 2000.But two years later, Middle East correspondent Sylke Tempel encouraged Amal and Odelia to develop their friendship by facilitating an exchange of their deepest feelings through letters. In their letters, Amal and Odelia discuss the Intifada, their families, traditions, suicide bombers, and military service. They write frankly of their anger, frustrations, and fear, but also of their hopes and dreams for a brighter future.Together, Amal and Odelia give us a renewed sense of hope for peace in the Middle East, in We Just Want To Live Here.
176 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2003
5 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
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June 13, 2017
This book astonished me. Two teens, one Palestinian and one Israeli, exchanged letters in which they discussed their lives, their political views, their traditions and customs, and more. They often disagreed, especially when discussing politics, but they still remained friends. It was a fascinating and eye-opening dialogue. I learned a lot. I can't imagine what I would have done or how I would have felt if I'd had to enter the army right after high school, as Odelia did. There is so much here that would make for a great book discussion, especially among high school and college-age students. Highly recommended.
December 8, 2020
"Wir wollen beide hier leben" ist ein Buch, das eine Journalistin zusammengestellt und angeregt hat, in dem sich zwei Jugendliche aus Jerusalem in Briefen und auch zwei Gesprächen über ihre unterschiedlichen Leben austauschen: denn eine ist israelische Jüdin, die andere Palästinenserin. Das Buch ist von 2002 - und damit schon einige Jahre alt. Das erste Mal habe ich es damals gelesen, als Jugendliche, und muss das Buch daher auch aus zwei verschiedenen Perspektiven bewerten.
Damals fand ich es deutlich besser. Die jugendlichen Perspektiven haben zu mir gesprochen, vor allem Odelias, und mit meinen damaligen Kenntnissen war das hier ziemlich bahnbrechend. Mit Politik oder der Situation in Israel hatte ich mich noch nie groß auseinander gesetzt, allerhöchstens über die Gründung Israels in der Schule gelernt und dass das etwas Gutes war nach dem Holocaust etc etc.
In "Wir wollen beide hier leben" gibt es neben den zwei jugendlichen Stimmen und ihren Weltanschauungen und Erfahrungen eine Zeittafel, Karten mit den Aufteilungen Israels zu verschiedenen Zeitpunkten und Zeitungsüberschriften, die hier und da zu den thematischen Kapiteln eingeordnet werden. Man erhält also einen guten Überblick über die Situation um die Jahrtausendwende und wie Amal und Odelia den Konflikt sehen, aber auch wie sie ihr Leben führen.
Heute habe ich mich weniger abgeholt gefühlt. Ich finde es immer noch ein gutes Buch als Einstieg für Jugendliche, doch müsste es dringend aktualisiert werden, wenn es auch heute zu jugendlichen Lesern sprechen soll. Auch ich hätte gern eine aktualisiertere Zeittafel, auch wenn ich in den letzten fast 20 Jahren selbst einiges an Zeitung gelesen habe und mich informiert. Dennoch ist so ein Konflikt schwer zu überblicken und auch etwas traurig, dass sich da nicht viel getan hat. Die Hoffnungen, die gerade eine sehr optimistische und weltverbessernde Odelia sieht, hat sich leider noch nicht erfüllt und der Konflikt besteht nach wie vor.
Mir waren bei der wiederholten Lektüre die Briefe ein wenig zu kurz und wenig eingeordnet. Gerade dann, wenn die Konflikte auftauchen, enden die Briefe, weil dann vermutlich das Buch zusammengestellt wurde. Oder es sind Amal und Odelia, die sich zu vielen Themen irgendwann nichts mehr zu sagen haben, was ebenso schade wäre.
Ich konnte dennoch einiges lernen, auch wenn ich es heute sehr viel distanzierter und kritischer betrachtet habe. Dass z.B. viele Palästinenser gar keinen israelischen Pass besitzen und wie schwer ihr Leben in Israel dadurch wird. Wie sehr das Leben der jüdischen Israelis dem westlichen ähnelt. Der Blick auf die israelische Armee, den Odelia auch vor ihrer eigenen Zeit gibt, ist noch sehr verklärend, aber auch erklärend. Und es macht nachdenklich, wenn sie etwa behauptet, dass die israelische Armee vermutlich moralischer ist als Freiwilligen-Armeen, wo nur die Rechten oder Extremen sich verpflichten, weil alle anderen es ja nicht müssen.
Da mir aus westlicher Sicht Odelias Sicht sehr viel zugänglicher war als Amals, finde ich es etwas schade, dass hier nicht mehr redaktionell eingegriffen wurde, schließlich ist das Buch in Deutschland erschienen und diesen Bias werden viele der Leser haben. Amals Welt und ihre Werte und Vorstellungen wirken auf mich ebenso fremd wie auf Odelia und dass dann die verschiedenen Meinungen irgendwann abbrechen, fand ich ziemlich befremdlich.
Alles in allem aber für die Zielgruppe - vor allem zur Zeit des Erscheinens - ein sehr gutes Buch als Einstieg in den Konflikt, in die Region und verschiedenen Sichtweisen.
Damals fand ich es deutlich besser. Die jugendlichen Perspektiven haben zu mir gesprochen, vor allem Odelias, und mit meinen damaligen Kenntnissen war das hier ziemlich bahnbrechend. Mit Politik oder der Situation in Israel hatte ich mich noch nie groß auseinander gesetzt, allerhöchstens über die Gründung Israels in der Schule gelernt und dass das etwas Gutes war nach dem Holocaust etc etc.
In "Wir wollen beide hier leben" gibt es neben den zwei jugendlichen Stimmen und ihren Weltanschauungen und Erfahrungen eine Zeittafel, Karten mit den Aufteilungen Israels zu verschiedenen Zeitpunkten und Zeitungsüberschriften, die hier und da zu den thematischen Kapiteln eingeordnet werden. Man erhält also einen guten Überblick über die Situation um die Jahrtausendwende und wie Amal und Odelia den Konflikt sehen, aber auch wie sie ihr Leben führen.
Heute habe ich mich weniger abgeholt gefühlt. Ich finde es immer noch ein gutes Buch als Einstieg für Jugendliche, doch müsste es dringend aktualisiert werden, wenn es auch heute zu jugendlichen Lesern sprechen soll. Auch ich hätte gern eine aktualisiertere Zeittafel, auch wenn ich in den letzten fast 20 Jahren selbst einiges an Zeitung gelesen habe und mich informiert. Dennoch ist so ein Konflikt schwer zu überblicken und auch etwas traurig, dass sich da nicht viel getan hat. Die Hoffnungen, die gerade eine sehr optimistische und weltverbessernde Odelia sieht, hat sich leider noch nicht erfüllt und der Konflikt besteht nach wie vor.
Mir waren bei der wiederholten Lektüre die Briefe ein wenig zu kurz und wenig eingeordnet. Gerade dann, wenn die Konflikte auftauchen, enden die Briefe, weil dann vermutlich das Buch zusammengestellt wurde. Oder es sind Amal und Odelia, die sich zu vielen Themen irgendwann nichts mehr zu sagen haben, was ebenso schade wäre.
Ich konnte dennoch einiges lernen, auch wenn ich es heute sehr viel distanzierter und kritischer betrachtet habe. Dass z.B. viele Palästinenser gar keinen israelischen Pass besitzen und wie schwer ihr Leben in Israel dadurch wird. Wie sehr das Leben der jüdischen Israelis dem westlichen ähnelt. Der Blick auf die israelische Armee, den Odelia auch vor ihrer eigenen Zeit gibt, ist noch sehr verklärend, aber auch erklärend. Und es macht nachdenklich, wenn sie etwa behauptet, dass die israelische Armee vermutlich moralischer ist als Freiwilligen-Armeen, wo nur die Rechten oder Extremen sich verpflichten, weil alle anderen es ja nicht müssen.
Da mir aus westlicher Sicht Odelias Sicht sehr viel zugänglicher war als Amals, finde ich es etwas schade, dass hier nicht mehr redaktionell eingegriffen wurde, schließlich ist das Buch in Deutschland erschienen und diesen Bias werden viele der Leser haben. Amals Welt und ihre Werte und Vorstellungen wirken auf mich ebenso fremd wie auf Odelia und dass dann die verschiedenen Meinungen irgendwann abbrechen, fand ich ziemlich befremdlich.
Alles in allem aber für die Zielgruppe - vor allem zur Zeit des Erscheinens - ein sehr gutes Buch als Einstieg in den Konflikt, in die Region und verschiedenen Sichtweisen.
December 27, 2009
The premise for this book is amazing. The honesty, sometimes scarily haunting, between these two girls, tells the reader more than the news will ever be able to impart. I felt the book's weakness stemmed from the writer/editor who allowed the exchange to happen. She could have done a much better job--especially for a young adult audience--of helping the reader to understand the politics of the area, i.e. who is who, the place names and their significance, etc. The glossary was somewhat helpful; the chronology necessary. But a stronger introduction of where these girls come from BEFORE one reads their stories would have made the impact of the book even greater.
October 7, 2023
This worked better than maybe it had a right to work.
At the turn of the century, Sylke Tempel was a Middle East correspondent who “was feeling the fatigue” of her job, she wrote in this book’s intro. She’d been around all aspects of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, interviewing experts and politicians, and researching all aspects of the history. She started desiring something new: “I wanted to hear the voices of those in Israel and Palestine who have to live in ‘that situation,’ who are formed by it, and who will have to overcome it one day if they want to live in peace with one another.”
She found Amal Rifai’I and Odelia Ainbinder through a program designed to have Israeli and Palestinian teenagers interact on a program abroad. Amal and Odelia knew each other a little from the program, but when they got home the Intifada started, and most connections between them and their classmates disappeared.
Tempel directed the girls to write letters back and forth. The scope of her involvement is a little vague, though it seems she encouraged them to write on certain themes, which she later organized into chapters. Though in general, the letters didn’t feel too forced to me.
Both young women wrote in English, which wasn’t their mother tongue (and spoke to the fact that neither knew each other’s native language at all or well enough to communicate.) They were also teenagers, and particularly in Odelia’s case, she had an upbringing akin to that of many western teens. Amal had a more socially conservative upbringing. She was preparing to get married while Odelia was taking a “gap year” before her mandatory IDF service to engage in community service projects. Both young women grew up in Israel, and Tempel deliberately chose from the Palestinian society that, though separate, lived within the green line and thus was subject to the Occupation as such. If you want to start with building empathy and understanding, perhaps, you start with fewer hurdles and then move outward.
The Intifada, though killing and terrorizing Israelis and brutal backlash against Palestinians generally, was not a prime part of the letters. Tempel did include translated headlines from various Israeli and Palestinian publications, to give the impression of the framing of the conflict, but that part felt a little tacked on. Instead, the young women settled into rumination styles that I think Tempel analyzed well: Odelia’s letters were long, nuanced and opinionated, because a few generations after the founding of the Jewish state, “Israeli society—and Odelia for that matter—can afford a comparably high level of freedom.”
Amal, who wrote under a pseudonym, (which Tempel balanced nicely between explaining the reality of Israelis and Palestinians both spying on Palestinians, but also the unlikeliness in this situation for any repercussions) is not so free. She wrote shorter, less detailed letters, though she did respond to one or two of Odelia’s points at a time. Her society, Tempel explains, in lacks “an individual approach to history” as they’re still struggling for self-determination. Palestinians are less likely to challenge their “collective narrative” because they face more external threat. This community ideology is something I’ve been thinking of more generally as I try to navigate identity in a Jewish-inspired novel I’m writing, but anywho.
There’s a couple of sit-down interviews with Tempel, and two (or three) sections where Odelia’s parents and Amal’s grandfather tell their histories and a bit of what got their families to this space. Both young women give some specific examples at the end for what they understand better about each other’s cultures. They have disagreements along the way, but they maintain the general respect for one another to keep the project going forward.
Coming in with my own baggage, I struggled sometimes with Odelia’s lack of interest in Jewish history and religion specifically, especially since it makes it more difficult for someone like Amal, who has deep ties to her religion and history, to understand Israelis as more than “occupiers.” That being said, I think she ultimately took those aspects less for granted as Amal poked at them. I’m not sure Amal ever truly felt the respect for the Jewish experience that she was asking for with regards to the Islamic and Palestinian experience. Of course the circumstances are further hindered by the Occupation, and how many aspects of Israeli culture are superseded upon the Palestinians who live within the green line. But I appreciate that Tempel pressed her on these issues as well.
It's been twenty years since this book was written, and as the wheel turns much has changed in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and much remains the same. Part of me wishes I could grab a magic ball and see where Amal and Odelia—now women my age—have ended up. But I’m grateful for this book with its approachable writing and focus on relationship-building. I hope it was a salve for Tempel as well!
At the turn of the century, Sylke Tempel was a Middle East correspondent who “was feeling the fatigue” of her job, she wrote in this book’s intro. She’d been around all aspects of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, interviewing experts and politicians, and researching all aspects of the history. She started desiring something new: “I wanted to hear the voices of those in Israel and Palestine who have to live in ‘that situation,’ who are formed by it, and who will have to overcome it one day if they want to live in peace with one another.”
She found Amal Rifai’I and Odelia Ainbinder through a program designed to have Israeli and Palestinian teenagers interact on a program abroad. Amal and Odelia knew each other a little from the program, but when they got home the Intifada started, and most connections between them and their classmates disappeared.
Tempel directed the girls to write letters back and forth. The scope of her involvement is a little vague, though it seems she encouraged them to write on certain themes, which she later organized into chapters. Though in general, the letters didn’t feel too forced to me.
Both young women wrote in English, which wasn’t their mother tongue (and spoke to the fact that neither knew each other’s native language at all or well enough to communicate.) They were also teenagers, and particularly in Odelia’s case, she had an upbringing akin to that of many western teens. Amal had a more socially conservative upbringing. She was preparing to get married while Odelia was taking a “gap year” before her mandatory IDF service to engage in community service projects. Both young women grew up in Israel, and Tempel deliberately chose from the Palestinian society that, though separate, lived within the green line and thus was subject to the Occupation as such. If you want to start with building empathy and understanding, perhaps, you start with fewer hurdles and then move outward.
The Intifada, though killing and terrorizing Israelis and brutal backlash against Palestinians generally, was not a prime part of the letters. Tempel did include translated headlines from various Israeli and Palestinian publications, to give the impression of the framing of the conflict, but that part felt a little tacked on. Instead, the young women settled into rumination styles that I think Tempel analyzed well: Odelia’s letters were long, nuanced and opinionated, because a few generations after the founding of the Jewish state, “Israeli society—and Odelia for that matter—can afford a comparably high level of freedom.”
Amal, who wrote under a pseudonym, (which Tempel balanced nicely between explaining the reality of Israelis and Palestinians both spying on Palestinians, but also the unlikeliness in this situation for any repercussions) is not so free. She wrote shorter, less detailed letters, though she did respond to one or two of Odelia’s points at a time. Her society, Tempel explains, in lacks “an individual approach to history” as they’re still struggling for self-determination. Palestinians are less likely to challenge their “collective narrative” because they face more external threat. This community ideology is something I’ve been thinking of more generally as I try to navigate identity in a Jewish-inspired novel I’m writing, but anywho.
There’s a couple of sit-down interviews with Tempel, and two (or three) sections where Odelia’s parents and Amal’s grandfather tell their histories and a bit of what got their families to this space. Both young women give some specific examples at the end for what they understand better about each other’s cultures. They have disagreements along the way, but they maintain the general respect for one another to keep the project going forward.
Coming in with my own baggage, I struggled sometimes with Odelia’s lack of interest in Jewish history and religion specifically, especially since it makes it more difficult for someone like Amal, who has deep ties to her religion and history, to understand Israelis as more than “occupiers.” That being said, I think she ultimately took those aspects less for granted as Amal poked at them. I’m not sure Amal ever truly felt the respect for the Jewish experience that she was asking for with regards to the Islamic and Palestinian experience. Of course the circumstances are further hindered by the Occupation, and how many aspects of Israeli culture are superseded upon the Palestinians who live within the green line. But I appreciate that Tempel pressed her on these issues as well.
It's been twenty years since this book was written, and as the wheel turns much has changed in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict and much remains the same. Part of me wishes I could grab a magic ball and see where Amal and Odelia—now women my age—have ended up. But I’m grateful for this book with its approachable writing and focus on relationship-building. I hope it was a salve for Tempel as well!
January 18, 2016
I was intrigued by the idea of an Israeli teenager and a Palestinian teenager sharing letters about their completely different lives in the same city (Jerusalem), but the book didn't thrill me. Neither 18-year-old revealed much passion about anything, and there was more passive aggressive bickering about politics in their letters than details about their daily lives and struggles.
March 11, 2024
Letters of Life, Love, and Liberty
We Just Want to Live Here is a collection of letters between a Palestinian teenage girl (who goes by Amal in this book) and an Israeli teenage girl (named Odelia) at the beginning of the Second Intifada. The two had previously met on an organized trip to Europe, and that is why reporter Sylke Tempel asked them to exchange letters. They discuss an array of topics from the Israeli army to boyfriends to education.
Given that now, in early 2024, the conflict in Israel has erupted once again, this short book is important to anyone who wants to understand the history of the conflict or who treats the conflict as black-and-white and needs to see there is more to it than that.
The only age restriction would be based on the topic itself; given that it discusses heavy topics without detailed gore or inappropriate language, etc., I would recommend the book for people at least 10 years of age, and definitely all high schoolers. While 10 is young, the current conflict is happening now, and this book provides crucial background and history to understanding it.
Also, it is important that teens are given the opportunity to form their own, informed opinions; since the conflict is so prominent in the news today, they will form an opinion, and that opinion will be more difficult to change in later years. If they grow up with uninformed opinions and a closed mind, widespread change will be nearly impossible. An early introduction to open-mindedness can do wonders for their future selves.
The book also includes a note from the reporter, Sylke Tempel, who explains some of the background behind the book’s creation, and at the end, a timeline of events leading up to and during the Second Intifada, so readers are not lost when reading the letters. There are also headlines interspersed throughout the book, so the reader can understand what Amal and Odelia were living through when they wrote their letters.
The letters themselves include powerful anecdotes and deep insights into the history and culture of Amal and Odelia, both as individuals and as either a Palestinian or an Israeli. Tempel also hosts conversations between the two, and those are included in the book as well.
There are some weird editing instances, perhaps made to preserve the integrity of the letters. Also, during discussions, Sylke Tempel’s questions seem basic, and they do little to encourage deeper discussion.
The girls themselves make some truly out-of-pocket comments, so it is important to keep in mind they are teens, and not to discredit all their insights based on a few (highly) insensitive comments. While at times they are insensitive, at other times, they are truly open-minded, and they almost always provide valuable insights into the struggles and mindsets of their two cultures.
For example, Odelia blames Palestinians for their own financial distress: “The Palestinian Authority wasn’t doing much either to make the lives of the people in their areas better. They didn’t create jobs for them or anything, and contributed a lot to their frustration” (Tempel 52). Her response to Amal's frustrated venting of injustices to Palestinians is also insensitive, claiming she, who is not Palestinian or Arab or Muslim in Israel, is able to fully understand the scope of Amal's experiences, discounting Amal's suffering: "Everything you wrote--I know." (Tempel 68).
The book will not provide clear answers. A reader will not come away certain of which side is right or wrong—but that is the point. It is an important account that humanizes both sides (something I know many in America and the world need to see) and can open its readers’ minds (something I know many in America and the world need to experience).
We Just Want to Live Here is a collection of letters between a Palestinian teenage girl (who goes by Amal in this book) and an Israeli teenage girl (named Odelia) at the beginning of the Second Intifada. The two had previously met on an organized trip to Europe, and that is why reporter Sylke Tempel asked them to exchange letters. They discuss an array of topics from the Israeli army to boyfriends to education.
Given that now, in early 2024, the conflict in Israel has erupted once again, this short book is important to anyone who wants to understand the history of the conflict or who treats the conflict as black-and-white and needs to see there is more to it than that.
The only age restriction would be based on the topic itself; given that it discusses heavy topics without detailed gore or inappropriate language, etc., I would recommend the book for people at least 10 years of age, and definitely all high schoolers. While 10 is young, the current conflict is happening now, and this book provides crucial background and history to understanding it.
Also, it is important that teens are given the opportunity to form their own, informed opinions; since the conflict is so prominent in the news today, they will form an opinion, and that opinion will be more difficult to change in later years. If they grow up with uninformed opinions and a closed mind, widespread change will be nearly impossible. An early introduction to open-mindedness can do wonders for their future selves.
The book also includes a note from the reporter, Sylke Tempel, who explains some of the background behind the book’s creation, and at the end, a timeline of events leading up to and during the Second Intifada, so readers are not lost when reading the letters. There are also headlines interspersed throughout the book, so the reader can understand what Amal and Odelia were living through when they wrote their letters.
The letters themselves include powerful anecdotes and deep insights into the history and culture of Amal and Odelia, both as individuals and as either a Palestinian or an Israeli. Tempel also hosts conversations between the two, and those are included in the book as well.
There are some weird editing instances, perhaps made to preserve the integrity of the letters. Also, during discussions, Sylke Tempel’s questions seem basic, and they do little to encourage deeper discussion.
The girls themselves make some truly out-of-pocket comments, so it is important to keep in mind they are teens, and not to discredit all their insights based on a few (highly) insensitive comments. While at times they are insensitive, at other times, they are truly open-minded, and they almost always provide valuable insights into the struggles and mindsets of their two cultures.
For example, Odelia blames Palestinians for their own financial distress: “The Palestinian Authority wasn’t doing much either to make the lives of the people in their areas better. They didn’t create jobs for them or anything, and contributed a lot to their frustration” (Tempel 52). Her response to Amal's frustrated venting of injustices to Palestinians is also insensitive, claiming she, who is not Palestinian or Arab or Muslim in Israel, is able to fully understand the scope of Amal's experiences, discounting Amal's suffering: "Everything you wrote--I know." (Tempel 68).
The book will not provide clear answers. A reader will not come away certain of which side is right or wrong—but that is the point. It is an important account that humanizes both sides (something I know many in America and the world need to see) and can open its readers’ minds (something I know many in America and the world need to experience).
March 11, 2024
Given the current situation in Israel and Palestine, this book was an informative and perspective-broadening read. It centers around two teenagers, one Israeli and one Palestinian, who met on an exchange trip to Switzerland with Peace Child Israel. Following the outbreak of the Second Intifada, Sylke Tempel, a Middle East correspondent, began facilitating an exchange of letters between the two.
As a Jewish Zionist with family and friends in Israel, it’s easy to get lost in the perspective of one side and disregard or completely ignore the other. While I try my absolute best to understand as many perspectives on the issue as I can, once emotion gets involved, objectivity kind of falls apart. This book, however, presented two perspectives in a way that was easy to understand and empathize with regardless of which side of the political spectrum you fall on. It opened my eyes to the struggles that Palestinians face even among their own people, and to the more common points of view on both sides; whereas media coverage lends a lot of attention to extremists, the more moderate beliefs expressed by Amal and Odelia are much more common among those actually living this conflict. While they disagreed on some political items—such as their opinions on Yasser Arafat—they continued to be respectful of one another’s beliefs and struggles, and were therefore able to remain friends. Their exchanges prove that, in essence, both sides want the same thing: They truly do just want to live there.
I think we as outsiders in Western culture tend to make assumptions about conflicts like these and fall victim to the extremist, uncultured views the media pushes on us. We cannot develop truly informed opinions about these topics if we are simply watching biased perspectives of how everything unfolds without asking questions or exposing ourselves to first-hand accounts. I guarantee if we were the ones living in this conflict, on either side, our views would be much different, and that is the kind of perspective this book provides. It allows us to step away from the false-emotion-filled, designed-to-draw-people-in, outsider view we typically get from the news, and objectively listen to the experiences of two people who have lived their entire lives in this conflict. The divisiveness of the media can be easily broken down if we decide as a society to listen and be respectful, because the whole point of this book is that the people do not want violence and hatred; they want peace and love, and the only reasons why so much of the former exists are that the governments do not represent the people, and the rest of the world pushes crippling divisiveness on whomever has a particular opinion on the conflict.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It helped me broaden my horizons and think about the conflict in a new way based on inside information. I think Odelia’s comment in her conversation with Amal at the end of the book sums up the need for peace: “We are not going to disappear and you aren’t either. I think neither Israelis nor Palestinians should forget the suffering inflicted on them by the other. It is important to remember history. But I also feel that Israelis and Palestinians should stop blaming one another constantly” (Tempel 136). This goes for those of us outside of the conflict as well; if we were to stop blaming each other constantly and just listen, the world would be a much less divisive place.
As a Jewish Zionist with family and friends in Israel, it’s easy to get lost in the perspective of one side and disregard or completely ignore the other. While I try my absolute best to understand as many perspectives on the issue as I can, once emotion gets involved, objectivity kind of falls apart. This book, however, presented two perspectives in a way that was easy to understand and empathize with regardless of which side of the political spectrum you fall on. It opened my eyes to the struggles that Palestinians face even among their own people, and to the more common points of view on both sides; whereas media coverage lends a lot of attention to extremists, the more moderate beliefs expressed by Amal and Odelia are much more common among those actually living this conflict. While they disagreed on some political items—such as their opinions on Yasser Arafat—they continued to be respectful of one another’s beliefs and struggles, and were therefore able to remain friends. Their exchanges prove that, in essence, both sides want the same thing: They truly do just want to live there.
I think we as outsiders in Western culture tend to make assumptions about conflicts like these and fall victim to the extremist, uncultured views the media pushes on us. We cannot develop truly informed opinions about these topics if we are simply watching biased perspectives of how everything unfolds without asking questions or exposing ourselves to first-hand accounts. I guarantee if we were the ones living in this conflict, on either side, our views would be much different, and that is the kind of perspective this book provides. It allows us to step away from the false-emotion-filled, designed-to-draw-people-in, outsider view we typically get from the news, and objectively listen to the experiences of two people who have lived their entire lives in this conflict. The divisiveness of the media can be easily broken down if we decide as a society to listen and be respectful, because the whole point of this book is that the people do not want violence and hatred; they want peace and love, and the only reasons why so much of the former exists are that the governments do not represent the people, and the rest of the world pushes crippling divisiveness on whomever has a particular opinion on the conflict.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It helped me broaden my horizons and think about the conflict in a new way based on inside information. I think Odelia’s comment in her conversation with Amal at the end of the book sums up the need for peace: “We are not going to disappear and you aren’t either. I think neither Israelis nor Palestinians should forget the suffering inflicted on them by the other. It is important to remember history. But I also feel that Israelis and Palestinians should stop blaming one another constantly” (Tempel 136). This goes for those of us outside of the conflict as well; if we were to stop blaming each other constantly and just listen, the world would be a much less divisive place.
March 12, 2024
Quantifying suffering & Sylke Tempel’s We Just Want To Live Here.
There is no easy way to review a book that lays the hearts of two people bare, but I can put it into a three word phrase: read this story. The substance is all there, perhaps it will change your mind on a few things. If nothing else, it offers unique insight into the apparently ever-lasting conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians.
It is impossible to look past the political aspects of it, but for our purposes it’s more productive to focus on the way these letters were presented and the mediation between the two girls here. Odelia and Amal, an Israeli and Palestinian respectively, are the authors behind the letters with Sylke Tempel as the facilitator of the exchange. Tempel is unfortunately a rather ungifted mediator, particularly in the sections we see her and the girls discuss face-to-face. Every time those sections would come up, they’d turn into a total bore very quickly. The girls more-so stated their opinions and changed nothing rather than genuinely absorbing each other’s words. Some of that can be attributed to their poor ability to communicate, being that neither spoke English as a first language. But another factor is their inability to spar productively.
As you turn each page, you realize that these girls make deeply inflammatory statements and pretend that is an objective truth. One that made me put the book down was “I wish the Jews would forget [the Holocaust]. It would perhaps make them a happier people” from Amal. The ignorance that oozes from this is astounding. In the same breath she told Odelia it was unfair to ask the Palestinians to forget about their homeland. Such cognitive dissonance from their own hypocrisy between both of the girls can become very quickly frustrating when it continually comes up as a fault of theirs. This is not to say that Odelia is more open, she essentially said the equivalent to Amal in so many words throughout the book. I suppose my point here is to simply brace yourself for some offhand remarks from both of them, they can come as a bit of an unfortunate surprise.
A smaller gripe that’s easy to look past is an issue with continuity. These letters are grouped into sections, rather than the way they were chronologically exchanged. Which makes for some jarring topic shifts. Chapters are only loosely connected, and some of the phrases used within each response imply where they were actually meant to be. It’s semantics, but a little annoying nonetheless.
To put it simply: read this book as soon as you get the chance. For any of its minor flaws, the insight it provides greatly outweighs them. We have become so detached from our fellow man in this digital age, and a novel like this acts as a great catalyst to ground one’s view of the current war we are seeing there. Letting these girls' hopes and dreams die in ink is a disservice to them just as much as it is to yourself.
There is no easy way to review a book that lays the hearts of two people bare, but I can put it into a three word phrase: read this story. The substance is all there, perhaps it will change your mind on a few things. If nothing else, it offers unique insight into the apparently ever-lasting conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians.
It is impossible to look past the political aspects of it, but for our purposes it’s more productive to focus on the way these letters were presented and the mediation between the two girls here. Odelia and Amal, an Israeli and Palestinian respectively, are the authors behind the letters with Sylke Tempel as the facilitator of the exchange. Tempel is unfortunately a rather ungifted mediator, particularly in the sections we see her and the girls discuss face-to-face. Every time those sections would come up, they’d turn into a total bore very quickly. The girls more-so stated their opinions and changed nothing rather than genuinely absorbing each other’s words. Some of that can be attributed to their poor ability to communicate, being that neither spoke English as a first language. But another factor is their inability to spar productively.
As you turn each page, you realize that these girls make deeply inflammatory statements and pretend that is an objective truth. One that made me put the book down was “I wish the Jews would forget [the Holocaust]. It would perhaps make them a happier people” from Amal. The ignorance that oozes from this is astounding. In the same breath she told Odelia it was unfair to ask the Palestinians to forget about their homeland. Such cognitive dissonance from their own hypocrisy between both of the girls can become very quickly frustrating when it continually comes up as a fault of theirs. This is not to say that Odelia is more open, she essentially said the equivalent to Amal in so many words throughout the book. I suppose my point here is to simply brace yourself for some offhand remarks from both of them, they can come as a bit of an unfortunate surprise.
A smaller gripe that’s easy to look past is an issue with continuity. These letters are grouped into sections, rather than the way they were chronologically exchanged. Which makes for some jarring topic shifts. Chapters are only loosely connected, and some of the phrases used within each response imply where they were actually meant to be. It’s semantics, but a little annoying nonetheless.
To put it simply: read this book as soon as you get the chance. For any of its minor flaws, the insight it provides greatly outweighs them. We have become so detached from our fellow man in this digital age, and a novel like this acts as a great catalyst to ground one’s view of the current war we are seeing there. Letting these girls' hopes and dreams die in ink is a disservice to them just as much as it is to yourself.
July 4, 2018
This book is full of great information and insight. As it is basically a conversation between teenagers living in very different worlds but within the same city, it is enlightening. I did find it difficult to stay engaged for long periods of time so I would read a letter and then set it down until the next day. It’s not the kind of book that you read to find out what will happen next but it definitely educated you to the perspectives of individuals on both sides of this difficult situation.
August 28, 2021
Es una historia que te da las dos caras de la moneda,no solamente se menciona de las cosas de las que sufría y sufre la sociedad palestina y judía ,si no ,nos adentra con los testimonios de estas dos jóvenes que viven dia dia en estas circunstancias y que contra todo pronóstico inician una bonita amistad ,donde culturas,ideales ,opiniones se juntan y se debaten buscando quizá ponerse de acuerdo
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 30, 2018
I love the concept. But it could have used some editing to limit some of the repetition.
April 22, 2021
Short read. I really liked the perspective from the teenage girls. I think a lot of high schoolers would understand the conflict better if they read this book from the girls' perspecticve.
May 18, 2024
I would love a “where are they now” second book
May 7, 2018
It is a really strong punch from the first beggining. Since the page one this book makes you open your eyes into a whole world that sometimes it is too far away to take it with the serious that it deserve.
I learned a lot about Israel that I didn't know and I found the opinions of Amal and Odelia interesting. Outside of their cultural and political differences, they are very different personalities.
Reading on wikipedia about Israel was that I could understand a little more of the book, I had many doubts about how Israel is started, if it was a country that was conquered lands or. Thats why I didn't give it 5 stars to the book.
It is really hard to take It seems very ugly and very cruel that even in the century in which we live in Israel are looking for ways to totally dominate Palestinian regardless of religion that these people. It is very difficult to take a side, I think the principal mistake was that Israel was looking for a good of a community with war, attacking another, avoiding the words.
I really like it because it opened my eyes completly about what so many people is living so far away and so close st the same time.
I learned a lot about Israel that I didn't know and I found the opinions of Amal and Odelia interesting. Outside of their cultural and political differences, they are very different personalities.
Reading on wikipedia about Israel was that I could understand a little more of the book, I had many doubts about how Israel is started, if it was a country that was conquered lands or. Thats why I didn't give it 5 stars to the book.
It is really hard to take It seems very ugly and very cruel that even in the century in which we live in Israel are looking for ways to totally dominate Palestinian regardless of religion that these people. It is very difficult to take a side, I think the principal mistake was that Israel was looking for a good of a community with war, attacking another, avoiding the words.
I really like it because it opened my eyes completly about what so many people is living so far away and so close st the same time.
Read
August 21, 2011The entire title (which isn't listed) is
We Just Want to Live Here: A Palestinian Teenager, An Israeli Teenager - An Unlikely Friendship
from amazon.com:
The two authors, now 18, met in Switzerland during an exchange program in 2000, and returned to a Jerusalem soon gripped by the second intifada. After falling out of touch, they exchanged the letters collected in this book from August to November of 2002, cycling through anguish, accusation, artifice, allowance, appreciation-all of the beginnings of real friendship.
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I enjoyed this book & I think others would too. I learned a lot about Israel that I didn't know and I found the opinions of Amal and Odelia interesting. Outside of their cultural and political differences, they are very different personalities. I thought the history given by family members was also interesting. Thoughtfully, the author has included historical maps and a glossary of Hebrew and Arabic words to help the reader.
We Just Want to Live Here: A Palestinian Teenager, An Israeli Teenager - An Unlikely Friendship
from amazon.com:
The two authors, now 18, met in Switzerland during an exchange program in 2000, and returned to a Jerusalem soon gripped by the second intifada. After falling out of touch, they exchanged the letters collected in this book from August to November of 2002, cycling through anguish, accusation, artifice, allowance, appreciation-all of the beginnings of real friendship.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I enjoyed this book & I think others would too. I learned a lot about Israel that I didn't know and I found the opinions of Amal and Odelia interesting. Outside of their cultural and political differences, they are very different personalities. I thought the history given by family members was also interesting. Thoughtfully, the author has included historical maps and a glossary of Hebrew and Arabic words to help the reader.
March 19, 2020
It's interesting but not exciting. I do think it's an important book to read when starting to learn about the Palestine-Isreal conflict. It felt weird to read it, like I wasn't suppose to read those conversations.
December 10, 2010
it was good....
March 22, 2011
Sam read this in school for an English unit on persuasive writing. I didn't think that either girl was really persuasive, yet their views were interesting and I learned a lot from this book.
February 8, 2015
Muy interesante. Las distintas religiones y culturas... y las guerras por el poder. Recomendado.
July 9, 2015
Great idea. Tried three times but couldn't get into it.
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