208 The American Journal of lslamic Social Sciences 20:3 & 4 

Holy Land, Whose Land: 

Modern Dilemma, Ancient Roots? 

Dorothy Drummond 
Seattle: Educare Press, 2002. 326 pages. 

Dorothy Drummond's book was born at the dawn of the third millennium, 
when the author was in Jerusalem. She had taken notes throughout her 

travels in the Holy Land, which she defines not only as the land of historic 

Palestine, but also the lands of present-day Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, 
and Egypt (i.e., where the Patriarchs, Prophets, and the Holy Family 

roamed). Rather than write a travelogue, she decided to write a book about 

the Arab-Israeli conflict while interspersing her personal comments (in 

italics) about her journeys. Her intent is not to "answer the question posed 
in the title of this book. Rather, by shedding light on dark corners, it 

attempts to bring understanding," as she explains in the prologue. 

The book is divided into three parts: a discussion of the Israeli­

Palestinian conflict in the present, a discussion of the roots of the conflict 
traveling 4,000 years into the past, and a brief discussion of how negoti­

ation is the only way to resolve the conflict. There are maps and pho ­

tographs throughout the book, as well as a 40-page glossary of the Holy 

Land's people and places. Drummond has written the work in the present 
tense, because of the immediacy of all that has happened in the Middle 

East, but the discussion ultimately centers on the area between the 

Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. 
Her book promises to be a good, balanced account written in a won­

derfully accessible style. However, early on it runs into problems. For 

example, when she talks about the 1956 Israeli attack on Egypt, she fails 





210 The American Journal of lslamic Social Sciences 20:3 & 4 

prejudice, and in her genuine attempt to be unbiased in that she blames all 
sides for the mistakes made. The errors, some of which I have referred to 

above, definitely detract from the book. This is a shame, because her other­
wise stylistically very readable book does have a positive - and hopeful -
message to convey. 

Zaineb lstrabadi 
Associate Director of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies 

Indiana University. Bloomington, Indiana