Soldier of Peace: The Life of Yitzhak Rabin

Yitzhak Rabin's life was driven by the goal of bringing peace to Israel. Even when he served as army chief of staff during the Six-Day War, he worked actively for resolution to the conflict with Egypt, an extension of his efforts as Israel's U.S. ambassador during the Nixon administration. Years later, as Israel's prime minister, his efforts to reach a settlement with the Palestinians earned him the hatred of hardcore right-wingers and religious extremists alike, culminating in his assassination on November 4, 1995.

Dan Kurzman's biography, written in breezy,"fly-on-the-wall" prose, is based on more than 200 interviews, from Rabin's wife and son to Rabin's colleague Shimon Peres to U.S. secretaries of state Henry Kissinger and James A. Baker. The story of Rabin's rise to power intertwines with the gradual development of Israel into a Middle Eastern power, with the final legacy of both still to be resolved.