Episode · The Ezra Klein Show · 2025-08-13
Books mentioned on Is Israel Committing Genocide in Gaza? | The Ezra Klein Show
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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East West Street
East West Street by Philippe Sands is a critically acclaimed biographical and historical investigation that traces the origins of the legal concepts of genocide and crimes against humanity through the city of Lviv, intertwining the author's family history with the architects of international law.
Discussed“And he's the author of among other books, East West Street, which is about how the idea of genocide was developed and written into international law.”
Where to get it
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Janet Flanner's world
Janet Flanner's World: Uncollected Writings 1932-1975 by Janet Flanner is a rich compilation of sharp journalistic dispatches written by the legendary New Yorker European correspondent during decades of profound historical upheaval.
Recommended“One book that I would take is called Janet Flanner's World uncolcted writings 1932 to 1975. Janet Flanner was the New Yorker correspondent in Europe and she wrote extraordinary letters from Europe including on Nuremberg and they are so pertinent for what we've been talking about today in terms of the historic um aspect.”
Where to get it
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Commonwealth
Commonwealth by Ann Patchett is a sweeping novel that explores the complex dynamics of two intertwined families over several decades following an unexpected kiss at a christening party.
Recommended“A second book by Anne Patchet called Commonwealth which is about relationships. I did not expect that book to come up here. I love that book. Yeah, it's a wonderful book. It's a wonderful book and it draws the connections between the personal and the broader political in a way that really resonated with me.”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (1) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“There was a piece in Time magazine about a well a few five six years ago uh profile of Benjamin Netanyahu and the piece included a photograph of him reading East West Street and I have to say it's astonishing.”