Like Dreamers

Yossi Klein Halevi's "Like Dreamers" stands as a remarkable achievement in contemporary non-fiction, offering readers an intimate and expansive exploration of Israeli society through the intertwined lives of seven paratroopers who participated in the liberation of Jerusalem's Old City during the Six-Day War of 1967. The book traces these men's diverging paths over four decades, using their personal journeys as a lens to examine the fundamental tensions and transformations that have shaped modern Israel.

The narrative begins at a pivotal moment in Israeli history: the June 1967 capture of the Western Wall and the Old City of Jerusalem. Halevi introduces readers to members of the 55th Paratroopers Reserve Brigade, young men who experienced what many considered a miraculous military victory. Among them are figures who would later become influential in Israeli public life, including Yoel Bin-Nun, a religious Zionist who became a prominent rabbi and settlement advocate, and Arik Achmon, a kibbutznik who exemplified secular socialist Zionism. The author also follows Avital Geva, an artist and kibbutz member, and Yisrael Harel, who became a leader in the settlement movement.

What distinguishes this work from conventional military history or political analysis is Halevi's commitment to following these individuals through decades of personal and national evolution. The book documents how the euphoria of 1967 gradually gave way to deep divisions within Israeli society. The paratroopers who once fought side by side found themselves on opposite sides of Israel's most contentious debates: the future of the occupied territories, the role of religion in public life, the peace process, and the very definition of Zionism itself.

Halevi's journalistic approach relies heavily on extensive interviews and research, allowing him to craft detailed portraits of complex individuals rather than reducing them to political archetypes. The religious settlers who emerge from these pages are not caricatures but thoughtful people grappling with theological questions and national destiny. Similarly, the left-leaning kibbutzniks appear as individuals confronting the decline of their communal movement and questioning long-held assumptions about Israeli society.

The book's structure follows a roughly chronological path through major events in Israeli history: the Yom Kippur War of 1973, the rise of the peace movement, the First Lebanon War, the First Intifada, the Oslo Accords, and the Second Intifada. Through each crisis and turning point, Halevi returns to his central characters, showing how national events reverberated through individual lives and relationships. Friendships forged in battle became strained as political differences hardened into seemingly unbridgeable chasms.

One of the book's significant strengths lies in its treatment of the settlement movement's origins and evolution. Rather than presenting settlement as purely ideological or political, Halevi explores its roots in religious messianism and the particular interpretation of the 1967 victory as divine intervention. The author traces how some of the paratroopers became central figures in establishing communities in the West Bank, viewing this as a fulfillment of religious obligation and historical destiny.

Equally compelling is the book's examination of the kibbutz movement's trajectory. The narrative captures the idealism that once animated Israel's collective agricultural communities and documents their gradual decline and transformation. Through characters like Achmon and Geva, readers witness the personal costs of collective living and the painful process of questioning foundational beliefs about society and economics.

Halevi demonstrates considerable skill in maintaining narrative momentum across nearly 600 pages covering more than four decades. The prose remains accessible without sacrificing depth or nuance. The author resists the temptation to impose simple judgments on his subjects, instead allowing their contradictions and complexities to emerge naturally from the material.

The book received widespread critical acclaim upon publication, with recognition from numerous literary awards and praise from reviewers across the political spectrum. This reception reflects Halevi's success in crafting a work that transcends partisan boundaries while addressing intensely contested subjects. The author's own background, which includes experience living in both religious and secular Israeli communities, likely contributed to his ability to navigate these divides with empathy and insight.

"Like Dreamers" serves multiple functions simultaneously: as biography, as military history, as political analysis, and as national meditation. The book offers international readers valuable context for understanding contemporary Israeli debates while providing Israeli readers with a mirror reflecting their society's internal struggles. The paratroopers' stories become a vehicle for exploring questions that extend beyond any single nation: How do societies process traumatic victories? What happens when religious and secular citizens hold incompatible visions of their shared state? Can former comrades maintain bonds across deepening political divides?

This is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand modern Israel beyond headlines and sound bites, offering instead the texture and complexity that only sustained narrative journalism can provide.