Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy [Hardcover]

Leah Rabin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 31, 1997

The widow of the slain Israeli prime minister reflects on their forty-eight years together, her husband's political career, and his place in history, including his role in the peace-making process.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Seen by some as a hero and by others as a traitor for his compromises with the Palestinians, Yitzhak Rabin generated strong emotions in his native Israel. His assassination in November 1995 at the hands of a right-wing Jewish radical shocked the world and changed the face of Middle Eastern politics overnight. But whatever the public view of Rabin might have been, no one else had the perspective that many years of marriage gave his wife. In Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy, Leah Rabin shares her memories of the public figure and the private man.

It soon becomes evident that Rabin is a woman with strong preferences and opinions. She found Rosalyn Carter difficult to deal with and developed a fondness for Yasir Arafat. She has no doubt that her husband's assassination was the result of hate-mongering among right-wing rabbis and intellectuals based at Bar-Ilan University, where Yigal Amir, Rabin's killer, was a student. Leah Rabin may not have written the most objective biography of the late prime minister, but certainly Rabin is intimate and heartfelt and full of timely reflections on Israel's past and future.

From Library Journal

The wife of slain Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin here pours forth an emotional tribute to her husband, who contributed in many ways to the development of the state of Israel. Hers is a largely anecdotal and personal tale of love and friendship, recounting her family background as well as her husband's and detailing their life together from the time they met in 1943 until his assassination in November 1995. Also mentioned are well-known but darker incidents of Yitzhak Rabin's career, e.g., his role in the Altalena affair in 1948, involving armed confrontation between the Jewish establishment in Palestine and Jewish radicals attempting to smuggle in arms aboad the Altalena, and the sensational financial scandal the author herself faced in 1977. This book will appeal to romantic friends of Israel.
-?Sanford R. Silverburg, Catawba Coll., Salisbury, N.C.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: G. P. Putnam's Sons (March 31, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399142177
• ISBN-13: 978-0399142178
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,750,311 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I love this woman!, June 23, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy (Hardcover)

Leah Rabin is tough and gentle, a good wife and a good political partner. The story of my hero, her spouse, Yitzhak Rabin, brought tears to my eyes many times. The story is told not only of a war hero and politician, but of a life long love that has been lost. Even if you could care less about Israeli poltics, Leah Rabin's story can teach you lessons that we all need to learn

4.0 out of 5 stars Readable, personable, candid., November 13, 2011

By 

hobby fan "pepperminttrain" (Cinnaminson, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy (Hardcover)

I enjoyed reading this personal memoir of Rabin and his wife's life together. I liked the first half of the book better than the second half. It is tragic that the peace Rabin sought and finally signed did not last very long.

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for reading Israeli Modern History, June 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Rabin: Our Life, His Legacy (Hardcover)

Leah writes from her personal view about Rabin and Israels History. I liked the book very much and I have Leah's signature on my Hebrew Copy. From a reader who is commited to carrying on with Rabins Legacy. We miss him.