Be Strong and of Good Courage: How Israel's Most Important Leaders Shaped Its Destiny - Hardcover

Dennis Ross is an American diplomat and author. He has served as the Director of Policy Planning in the State Department under President George H. W. Bush, the special Middle East coordinator under President Bill Clinton, and was a special adviser for the Persian Gulf and Southwest Asia to the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Ambassador Ross has published extensively on the former Soviet Union, arms control, and the greater Middle East, including most recently Doomed to Succeed: The U.S.-Israel Relationship from Truman to Obama (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, October 2015). He has authored many op-eds in the New York Times, Washington Post, and other papers and magazines. In addition, he writes monthly columns for US News and World Report and the New York Daily News. He lives in Washington, D.C.
David Makovsky is the Ziegler distinguished fellow at The Washington Institute and director of the Project on Arab-Israel Relations. He is an adjunct professor of Middle East studies at the Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies since 2000 and was a senior advisor on Israel-Palestinian affairs in the Office of the Secretary of State during the Obama Administration. This is his third book.

"An unusually well-written book by two seasoned American diplomatic and academic commentators...It is certainly a stimulant to shake off the cobwebs of apathy - a work that provides food for thought."―Colin Shindler, Jerusalem Post

"Solid historical guidance for policymakers and students of the Israeli-Palestinian conundrum."―Kirkus Reviews

"For those of us who care deeply about Israel and the US-Israel relationship, Ross and Makovsky have done a real service. . . . They tell the story of Ben-Gurion, Begin, Rabin and Sharon . . . [and] provide guidance for today's leaders in Israel and for all of us on the meaning of leadership."―Hillary Rodham Clinton, 67th US secretary of state

"A powerful statement on the style and principles of leadership that are critical for shaping the Middle East peace process."―Henry Kissinger, 56th US secretary of state

"The decisions you describe, with meticulous attention to detail and with penetrating analysis, indeed required them to exhibit leadership, strategic judgment and moral fortitude....It will make a significant contribution to my library."―Reuven (Ruvi) Rivlin President of Israel

"A brilliant study of the role of moral courage in politics as exemplified by four of Israel's boldest prime ministers, and a passionate plea for similar courage in Israel today."―Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, former chief rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth

"An astute understanding of the policies of real leaders, along with insights based on many meetings and close observations."―George Shultz, 60th US secretary of state

"Be Strong and of Good Courage is of great importance to understand the most intimate decision-making process of our leaders during pivotal points of our history . . . and to learn and gain insights for Israel's future historic decisions that must be taken."―Gadi Eisenkot, 21st chief of general staff of the Israel Defense Forces, 2015-2019

"This book is a wake-up call to the most difficult decision that the State of Israel has faced since its establishment: preserving a Jewish and democratic identity or losing it. This is not a question of if it happens, but when."―Amir Eshel, former commander of the Israeli Air Force, 2012-2017