An extended review of a 2026 book by Aziz Abu Sarah and Maoz Inon
Note: Our print issue contains a shorter version of this review. Faith Today welcomes your thoughts on any of our reviews. We also welcome suggestions of other Canadian Christian books to review: Contact us.
Crown / Penguin, 2026. 240 pages. $38 (ebook $19, audio $25)
Our church had just spent nine consecutive Tuesdays learning about the complicated history of the people, land and conflict in Israel/Palestine. A complicated past combined with a precarious present left me feeling like the future of those who call this region home was bleaker than ever. It was weighing on me.
But then I came across an interview with coauthors Aziz Abu Sarah and Maoz Inon and I immediately felt a wave of encouragement. The next day I picked up their new book, and I was not disappointed.
Although Abu Sarah is a Palestinian Muslim and Inon is an Israeli Jew – meaning they’re on opposite sides of one of the most polarizing conflicts in the world – they had found a way to develop a genuine friendship built on mutual love and respect. They were the first to recognize they would never agree on everything, but this didn’t stop them from being able to find common ground through their involvement in the local tourist industry, through a shared passion for peace and, perhaps most importantly, through a common experience of loss.
Both men had lost loved ones at the hands of their perceived enemies. Abu Sarah tells the heartbreaking story of how, when he was ten years old, his older brother was arrested and beaten; eventually dying from untreated internal injuries. Inon then tells the grueling story of how both his parents were killed in the attacks of October 7, 2023. Instead of allowing these horrendous events to solidify their hatred, they supported one another in their grief and exemplified the incredible power of forgiveness.
The book is part travel memoir, part history lesson, part peacemakers’ journal. It weaves in and out of these genres effortlessly as these two unlikely friends take readers with them on an eight-day journey through Israel/Palestine. Along the way they offer life lessons that transcend both faith and location, touching the heart of our shared humanity.
They point out that polarization and hatred “come from the illusion that many of us believe we already know what is in the others’ hearts and minds.”
They discuss the importance of speaking up and not “playing along to get along.” This culminates in their 2024 meeting with Pope Francis, who told them not to "wait for heroes or world leaders; that ordinary people should take up the cause of peace.”
The pinnacle of the book for me is when Abu Sarah shares about his first experience reading the Gospels. He was captivated by the story of Jesus, but he was also deeply conflicted as he grappled with the concept of forgiveness: “I was angry at first, trying to understand: how could [Jesus] not punish the perpetrators who were trying to murder him? How could he ask me to love my enemies? Or forgive the men who murdered my brother? Eventually, I learned that the ideas that challenge us the most are often the ones we need the most. I learned that forgiveness is a path to freedom.” In part, it was Jesus who helped him choose grace over revenge and forgive his brother's killers.
There has been no shortage of books exploring this subject matter in recent years, but there is something moving about the stories of this particular book. I think it has to do with the unique way personal stories stir our souls toward something better, toward something that looks a little more like the Kin-dom of God.
As Christians we know that because of Jesus Christ the future is peace. Yet this book reminds us that we all have a role to play in bringing a bit of that future peace into the here and now.
And so if, after reading this book you still feel the need to draw lines of division, take the advice of these seasoned peacemakers and “let it be as those who believe in peace and equality and those who don't…yet.”
Editor's note: We love our reviewers, but we don’t always agree. You won’t either, maybe especially in the Bestsellers and Roundup sections. Do let us know what you think. Sample chapters of most books can be viewed at Books.Google.ca and Amazon.ca. Faith Today earns a small commission when people make purchases using our links to Amazon.ca.