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  • Six Days of War

  • June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East
  • By: Michael B. Oren
  • Narrated by: Robert Whitfield
  • Length: 17 hrs and 53 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (178 ratings)
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Six Days of War

By: Michael B. Oren
Narrated by: Robert Whitfield
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Summary

In Israel and the West, it is called the Six Day War. In the Arab world, it is known as the June War or, simply, as "the Setback". Never has a conflict so short, unforeseen, and largely unwanted by both sides so transformed the world. The Yom Kippur War, the war in Lebanon, the Camp David accords, the controversy over Jerusalem and Jewish settlements in the West Bank, the intifada, and the rise of Palestinian terror are all part of the outcome of those six days of intense Arab-Israeli fighting in the summer of 1967.

Michael B. Oren spotlights all the participants: Arab, Israeli, Soviet, and American, as well as all the world leaders involved in this earth-shaking clash that transformed the world.

©2002 Michael B. Oren (P)2003 Blackstone Audiobooks
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic reviews

"Oren is not only a lucid, compelling writer, but reader Robert Whitfield is a master at narrative drive through intonation alone. The listener cannot put this book down. A triumph." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about Six Days of War

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Very biased, but worthwhile

This book gives a good overview of the 6-day war if (and only if) you remember that this is a very one-sided account of things. Oren is an Israeli diplomat, and despite going to some trouble early in the book to claim impartiality, this account is very partial indeed.

Put simply - everything Israel did was, in Oren's view, entirely defensive, moral and justified.

He mentions with abhorrence the Arab Legion shelling civilian Jewish parts of Jerusalem, but expresses no such concern about Israeli bombing/shelling of Arab settlements. Nasser is portrayed as a vain madman who was hell-bent on destroying Israel. There are no mentions of why the Arab states were angry about the behaviour of Israel in the run up to the war, no mention of why Israel would not allow the UNEF to be re-positioned onto their side of the lines. Operation Dawn is discussed at length as a threat to Israel, and yet the Israeli plans to attack the Egyptians are explained as a morally just "response" to potential Egyptian aggression. The list of unbalance in this book is endless.

However, it is actually a good account as long as you remember it is just the Israeli version of events.The narration is excellent and it is well structured and easy to listen to and follow.

I would recommend it, but with the caveat that this is not a balanced account of what happened.

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18 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A fascinating acoount of the politics of a war

This is an excellent account of how a crisis can degenerate into a war. I know the history of the Middle East quite well but learned a great deal from this book -- particularly the reminders about how worthless security guarantees from Europe and the US can be. My only criticism of the book itself is that the author sometimes takes memoirs at face value rather than putting them in the context of the motivations of the writer and the subject: for example, are a few of the Yiddish bon mots what the players wish they had said or were they really that quick witted? The narrator is good and the reading is never dull but his pronunciation of Hebrew and Arabic terms is careless and sometimes unitelligible if you don't know what he is trying to say

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Balanced and Informative

I found the book to be slightly overwhelming at first, the amount of information being imparted was quite rapid in pace and a lot to take in initially. The book settled down when it began swirling around the political scene, but I felt key concepts and events had swept me by at times. I enjoyed the title, it really offered up a balanced and informative slice of the Middle East Conflict during the late 60's. There wasn't as much narrative on the ground as I like, but you get a good chunk of the political scene and the motivations and lack of aptitude around the whole conflict. The personalities shine through the commentary and you really feel the tug of war going on with the super-powers, plucking the strings behind the main issues.

It certainly gives you a better understanding of the Crisis in the Middle East, and gives you enough of the lead up to the Six Day War, and postulating about the events after the Six Day War. It made me appreciate just how complicated the situation is, and why it is still a hotbed of hostility to this day.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating listen, just bring a map

The book is as detailed and thorough as one could hope for. It builds and builds, creeping towards the war you know is going to break out. Oren wonderfully breaks down the conversations, contexts, and collective strain that preceded the conflict. By the time the first shots are fired you have come to know the protagonists well, and can feel the exhaustion they must have felt after months of build-up and stress. The war itself is told well, highlighting the challenges of individual battles in enough detail to give you a sense of their danger and difficulty, but not too much as to overwhelm you with minute orders and commands.



Oren takes on the task of this assignment with as much neutrality and objectivity as is probably possible, but you end up getting a better feel for the Israeli side. This is not to say he takes a pro-Israel stance, just that the detail of the leadership decisions of the Israeli leadership is more than the other countries. He does an excellent job addressing the interests of each country, including the Russians and USA along with the entire Middle-East contingent, so this is not really a fault of the book, just an observation on my part. The other problem with the book, and I suspect this is related to the audio format, is that you really could benefit from a map. Yes, it is easy enough to envisage where Egypt and Israel sit on a map, but when he starts discussing different towns and passes, it would have been nice to have a map.



Overall, a wonderfully written and researched book that brings to light the hectic pace of negotiations and international diplomacy that tends to get overlooked when discussing this war.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great book

It gives you the story and the detail. Would listen again. Absolutely fantastic performanced storyline

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Highly detailed, fascinating account.

A very well delivered account of some of the 60's and 70's key characters of the time.
Hard to measure whether the narrative is biased particularly in the context that it was a remarkable campaign of a number of levels.
If you have an interest in the region then this is a must.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Clear, flowing and insightful

I liked it. I found it clear and accessible with a good flow, with new insights

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Who Dares, Wins.

Would you listen to Six Days of War again? Why?

Yes because there is so much information to absorb.

Any additional comments?

Having known the basic events of this war, this book brilliantly explains the background, reasoning and actions of all parties involved. Understanding the events of the 6 day war has allowed me to make a little sense of the situation since the war.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

informative and in depth

The reading was very good and the book contains alot of information, at times hard to follow but overall flows well.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A deep and revealing read

The book really goes beyond the surface, showing how the Cold War contributed to the 6 Day War, something I had not really considered. It is largely focussed on the politics and lead up, with a lot of exploration of both the Arab and Israeli political goings on, with plenty of quotes from many of the players, both big and small. An honest account, which doesn’t pull any punches when discussing the leadership of both the Israelis and the Arabs. I’d definitely recommend this.

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