The period of the Yishuv (1900–48) saw a flourishing of creative thinkers who reworked the contours of Jewish and Zionist thought while building the Jewish homeland. Eliezer Schweid, who grew up during the period he describes here, writes profoundly and sympathetically about these thinkers—Gordon, Brenner, Jabotinsky, Bialik, Kaufmann, Kook, Katznelson, and others from a standpoint of intimate first-hand knowledge. The issues they wrestled with are vital for an understanding of Israel’s recent development and remain crucial for envisioning the possibilities of Israel’s future both internally and in relation to its neighbours, the world, and Jewish tradition.
