The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited (Cambridge Middle East Studies, Series Number 18)

Below at the bottom of this post is the AskHistorian's official I/P History list. However, the problem with the list is that it mostly lists books that try to ecapsualte the history of this area and relate it directly to the I/P conflict. Meaning the lsit tends towards History of the conflict itself. Based on your question you might not be interested in framing all Palestinians history or all Israel history in terms of the conflict. I am not saying to completly ignore the conflict in yoru research. I am saying you will loose a certain richness if your frame all history of Israel and Palestine around the I/P conflict. Personally, I've enjoyed the following books about I/P History that should have been included on the list (some where on the list really) Jerusalem a Biography by Simon Sebag Montefiore A peace to End all Peace by David Fromkin The Arabs: A History by Eugene Rogan Israeli and Palestinian History The Zionist Idea: A Historical Analysis and Reader by Arthur Hertzberg. This is a fantastic collection of biographical information on the authors and other primary source writings by Zionists throughout the history of Zionism pre-Israel especially. It provides description of the varieties of Zionism and has documents describing precisely what the theories of each were, from their main thinkers. Great for an introduction to Zionist ideas and how they evolved and differed. - (Find on Amazon.com - Find on Bookshop.org) Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict: A history with documents by Charles Smith. This is a nice, concise history of the conflict that contains accessible documents that are relevant to the previous section. It is fairly Palestinian-leaning, but still provides a great overview in tandem with the Morris book below. - (Find on Amazon.com) Righteous Victims: A History of the Zionist-Arab Conflict: 1881-2001 by Benny Morris. This is an Israeli-historian based view of the history of the conflicts surrounding the Palestine region, and the Israeli conflict. It's great to balance this against the Iron Cage book suggested below, to get a balanced view of both sides. - (Find on Amazon.com - Find on Bookshop.org) The Iron Cage: The Story of the Palestinian Struggle for Statehood by Rashid Khalidi. Written from the Palestinian point of view (mostly post-1948), this book is great to balance against the Benny Morris book above for a good overview of Palestinian-Israeli struggles throughout the history of Israel. - (Find on Amazon.com - Find on Bookshop.org) 1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War by Benny Morris. This book covers the history of the first Arab-Israeli war, with great detail given for how the war was conducted, the events of it, and how the Israelis managed to succeed in winning the war itself. This focuses on the lead-up to war from the Civil War that had been going on before, and discusses the various fronts. - (Find on Amazon.com - Find on Bookshop.org) The Birth of the Palestinian Refugee Problem Revisited by Benny Morris. Written by one of the most prolific writers on the history of Israeli conflict, this "New Historian" book refutes many of the traditional Israeli historian arguments about how Palestinian refugees came to be in 1948. It uses declassified documents to paint a far more comprehensive and well-sourced picture of the 1948 war's effect on the local population, and is one of the most well-researched books on the subject out there. - (Find on Amazon.com - Find on Bookshop.org) Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East by Michael Oren: A fantastic overview of the 1967 war, with great insights into both sides of the conflict and their preparations. A very well-researched and respected book, it provides all the essentials to anyone looking to begin studying the 1967 conflict in depth. It is slightly Israel-biased, as most books on the subject of 1967 are, but it is easily the best way to get into the war's history as one can find.  - (Find on Amazon.com - Find on Bookshop.org) A Quiet Revolution: The First Palestinian Intifada and Nonviolent Resistance by Mary E. King: The title is fairly self explanatory, but I think it gives a good analysis of the events. Also the focus on the non-violence movement and its effect are frequently missing from the popular discourse on the matter. - (Find on Amazon.com - Find on Bookshop.org)