The Words of My Father: Love and Pain in Palestine

I picked up Yousef at his hotel and lyfted him to the airport. I had no idea who he was. Quiet at first, as we approached a view of town, he began to ask me about Pittsburgh and we began an engaging conversation. He was here on a book tour and I asked about his book. A very interesting conversation ensued during this brief meeting and I ordered his book that day and read it over the next few days. This book and Yousef's words and the words of his father opened my eyes and my heart to a people, a place, and an experience I knew little about..thank you! So many thoughts as I read his words but one in particular comes to my mind - each person is unique in every way - where they are from, their upbringing, their experiences, and so many unique factors that make stereotypes and generalizations invalid. Yousef's words remind me that everyone wrestles w the battle between the darkness and the light in their soul every moment of their life and those battles are won and lost, we learn, and we go on. This is an important work and I hope that many people read this book and learn about a world that may be far away but is also close at hand.

I spent New Year's Eve and New Year's day reading this very moving memoir. I can't recommend it highly enough. It felt like I had a front row seat into the life of this Palestinian family and how the Israeli occupation in Gaza during the second intifada affected their lives. The incidents I read about, though horrifying, were offset by the reaction of the head of the family, Khalil Bashir. His sense of humanity and unfaltering grace under pressure ultimately had a profound influence on his son Yousef, the author of this memoir.I have been an activist for years, but this book has motivated me to try to let go of any bitterness I feel and realize that when I lose my connection to the humanity of others, I am in essence, losing connection to my own humanity. Yousef's father was not willing to do that. He realized that was too great a price pay. I want to carry his message with me from now on. It's a great resolution to make today, at the start of 2021.

I read The Words of My Father last year and was horrified by the story of how Yousef's ancestral home in Gaza was occupied by Israeli soldiers for _years_ and inspired by his father's perseverance in keeping both his home and humanity, despite the daily degradation inflicted upon the family by the soldiers. Just minutes ago, I finished hearing Bashir speak about his memoir in an online book group. His recounting of his tortuous journey from his occupied home in Gaza, to rehabilitation in a Tel Aviv hospital after being shot by an Israeli soldier, to his education in the U.S. and finally to his vocation as a peacemaker was riveting. If you want to really understand the human suffering, and the potential for healing, in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, you must read this book and hear Yousef Bashir speak.

I met Yousef when he joined the Seeds of Peace International Camp at age 15. Once the other Palestinians found out that he had been shot in the back by an Israeli soldier, they wanted to use his story to show the Israelis how hard it is to be a Palestinian, under occupation. But, Yousef refused to allow his story to be told, except by him, so he could tell it in a way that would be constructive. I was impressed by this. In this book, Yousef tells his story in his own words and in his own way. The reader will understand him as a teenager, an international student in high school and university and a young adult. No doubt, Yousef also understands himself better, having gone through the reliving of his life by writing about it. I hope Yousef will continue to write so English speakers will know the impact of the Israeli occupation on the people living under those conditions. It is a wonderful book!

The honesty and transparency of this book, the descriptive detail that makes the stories so real, the author's vivid recounting of events are such that the reader experiences his journey and shares in his transformations.I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It conveys an eternal message still seeking a wider audience. I write this at a time when I am seeing hate and distrust in America at levels I never imagined. Yes, we must pray and we must also work - and work and work - to find lines of communication and points of entry to one another's experience until the commitment to peace is stronger than the desire for dominance. The Words of My Father is a clear and compelling Guidebook.

Bashir shares his personal story of his life and family growing up in Gaza. It's a compelling narrative of what life was like under the second intifada and having his family home of multi- generations occupied by the IDF. After being shot in the back by an Israeli soldier he found himself in a hospital in Tel Aviv recovering a long ordeal. Yousef and his dad and mom's compassion, humanity and lovers of peace came out loud and clear. This is a must read for any one, particularly Jews and lovers of Israel like myself.

The true story is touching and speaks to the travails of young adults; not just those living in conflict zones. The writer does a great job making the place and his experiences accessible to any reader as he gives you a window into his relationship with his father and how it informed his growing pains. Highly recommend it. Follow the author too. He's destined to go places.

This is Jane, Mark's wife, we share an amazon account.I read this book with my book club, and I highly recommend it. It took me to a place I did not know.I have profound respect for Yousef's family, especially his mom, for staying in place for peace when the bullets were flying in.

This was a fantastic read. So interesting to have a window into the life of a Palestinian, I commend the author for writing the book and sharing his stories with us. Despite the author's shocking circumstances for himself and his family, his father continually remained humble & truly sets an example of how every human being should be like. It's incredible how much they endured, yet remained so adamant to hold onto the hope for peace. The writing style is easy to read and is raw - often does the author not only tells us his stories, but his honest thought processes during them. The whole book, the author's endurance and his father's adamancy for peace while enduring wretched conditions, really changed my perspective on life. Definitely recommend this.

An excellent and humble book that is beautifully written.

Really enjoyed this memoir which brought home the difficulties experienced by those living in the Gaza Strip. His father was clearly an extraordinary man and his message of forgiveness is living on through Yousef.