A unique coming-of-age story from the lost world of Arab-Jews
Avi Shlaim was born in Baghdad and grew up in Israel. He is now a Professor of International Relations at St Antony's College, Oxford. His previous books include the critically acclaimed The Iron Wall and he writes regularly for the Guardian, Middle East Eye and other outlets.
'This remarkable upside-down tale… A personal story, not a polemic…
provocative… His personal odyssey confers on Shlaim an exceptional
authority for his words; he can say things that others of us
cannot… his thesis deserves to be considered with respect.' —Max
Hastings, The Sunday Times
'At the heart of this riveting and profoundly controversial book is
Shlaim’s investigation into the Baghdad bombings against Jewish
targets in 1950 and 1951… This is a beautifully written book which
artfully blends the personal with the political. The recollections
of family life in both its glory and its anguished tribulations are
vividly recreated. Shlaim’s is a powerful and humane voice which
reminds us that the Palestinians were not the only victims of the
creation of Israel in 1948.' —Spectator
'Three Worlds, by the Oxford historian of the modern Middle East
Avi Shlaim, is an often enchanting memoir of his childhood in
Baghdad... A gripping account... A lost world in Iraq, which is
brilliantly brought back to life in this fascinating memoir.'
—David Abulafia, Financial Times
'[An] absorbing, contentious memoir… Even if it “cannot be
rebuilt”, Three Worlds, quite marvellously, brings [the old world
of Iraq] back to life.' —TLS
'An intimate and engaging life story that forces the reader to
re-examine three very different worlds – Iraq, Israel and Britain –
in the middle decades of the twentieth century. A reflective and
insightful plunge into the identity politics of the Arab-Jew by one
of Britain’s greatest public intellectuals. But also the best book
I’ve read all year.' —Eugene Rogan, author of The Arabs
'This memoir is an engrossing personal narrative as well as a
historian’s penetrating reflection on the misfortune of the "other
victims" of Zionism: Jews exiled from their old Arab homelands
where they were well integrated, and transplanted to Israel, to
serve as a subaltern class of the Hebrew settler nation.' —Moshé
Machover
'Three Worlds juxtaposes a fascinating family story, unfolding
across Iraq, Israel, and the UK, with an intriguing historical
account of Iraqi Jews during an especially calamitous period. Here
the preeminent scholar of the Arab–Israeli conflict furnishes a
precious personal glimpse into a past in which Arab-Jews figure
prominently, generating a more subtle and multilayered picture of
the partition of Palestine and its aftermath.' —Ella Shohat, author
of On the Arab-Jew
'[Shlaim’s] mizrahi roots and experience produce a raw
nerve, the emotional and psychological wellspring of his later
oeuvre and politics… His personal story is moving, and it is told
with atypical, engrossing candor… Three Worlds is very
readable, like everything that Shlaim writes.' —Benny Morris,
Tablet
'In this detailed, resonant account, historian Shlaim recalls
the complexities of growing up as an Arab Jew in Iraq and Israel…
Those interested in alternative Jewish attitudes toward Zionism
will find this illuminating.' —Publishers Weekly
'Sharply observed, and without stridency, in making a case for an
ecumenical Israel.' —Kirkus
‘Brave… Well written and informative, this is a fascinating glimpse
into a forgotten world.’ —Tablet
'Vivid… This luminous memoir… offers readers a chance to reimagine
life not ruled by force, fear, deceit and exclusion.' —Middle East
Eye
'Avi Shlaim’s intriguing, ideologically-driven book, Three
Worlds, is a bitter-sweet autobiography of an accomplished Iraqi
Jew who left his homeland under duress, an impassioned look back at
Iraq’s lost Jewish community, and a stinging critique of Zionism
and Israel.' —Times of Israel
'A stunning new window on present-day politics.' 'This poignant and
important book interweaves the author’s own history with that of
the final decades of the Jewish community in Iraq.' PEN
Hessell-Tiltman judging panel
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