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Thirteen Days in September

By: Lawrence Wright
Narrated by: Mark Bramhall, Lawrence Wright
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Publisher's summary

ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW’ S 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR

A gripping day-by-day account of the 1978 Camp David conference, when President Jimmy Carter persuaded Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian president Anwar Sadat to sign the first peace treaty in the modern Middle East, one which endures to this day.

With his hallmark insight into the forces at play in the Middle East and his acclaimed journalistic skill, Lawrence Wright takes us through each of the thirteen days of the Camp David conference, illuminating the issues that have made the problems of the region so intractable, as well as exploring the scriptural narratives that continue to frame the conflict. In addition to his in-depth accounts of the lives of the three leaders, Wright draws vivid portraits of other fiery personalities who were present at Camp David–including Moshe Dayan, Osama el-Baz, and Zbigniew Brzezinski–as they work furiously behind the scenes. Wright also explores the significant role played by Rosalynn Carter.

What emerges is a riveting view of the making of this unexpected and so far unprecedented peace. Wright exhibits the full extent of Carter’s persistence in pushing an agreement forward, the extraordinary way in which the participants at the conference—many of them lifelong enemies—attained it, and the profound difficulties inherent in the process and its outcome, not the least of which has been the still unsettled struggle between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

In Thirteen Days in September, Wright gives us a resonant work of history and reportage that provides both a timely revisiting of this important diplomatic triumph and an inside look at how peace is made.

©2014 Lawrence Wright (P)2014 Random House Audio
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Critic reviews

One of the New York Times Top Ten Best Books of the Year

“A magnificent book [from] one of our finest nonfiction writers. . . . In his minute-by-minute account of the talks Wright intersperses a concise history of Egyptian-Israeli relations dating from the story of Exodus. Even more important is Wright's understanding that Sadat, Begin and Carter were not just political leaders, but exemplars of the Holy Land's three internecine religious traditions." - Joe Klein, New York Times Book Review, front page

“An engrossing chronicle of Carter’s marathon peace negotiations with Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat at Camp David . . . an illuminating view of a vital event that has been all but forgotten—and of a single-minded, even messianic president whose White House years have been denigrated and discredited . . . In examining the three, Wright is both fascinated and fair-minded, seeing men of faith and fortitude, and ultimately of vision, with stark similarities and even starker differences. . . . A wonderful book.”—David M. Shribman, Boston Globe

What listeners say about Thirteen Days in September

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Biased

Very biased! Very pro Arab and anti Israeli. President Carter showed strengths and weaknesses. His anger explains his views on the Middle East today. Holding a grudge I think.

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Lessons in Negotiation

Jimmy Carter is underrated as a president. He was the first to make an issue of human rights around the world. He was honest, well-intentioned and caring of the needy. He brought his vision of a just world to the Camp David peace talks, where he cajoled two strong-willed, suspicious leaders to overcome their personal antipathies and those of their people to reach a peace accord that has lasted, with some cracks, for many years.

Lawrence Wright provides a detailed, day-by-day account of the tense moments and the personal conflicts that nevertheless resulted in the peace accord. His account seems balanced and insightful. Minor players like the countries' foreign ministers and the wives are well-drawn--Roslyn Carter especially is a sympathetic figure, her husband's best friend and confidant, an instigator of the talks who struggles to keep her poker face through the temper tantrums, the deadlocks and the ultimate triumphs of the talks.

Overall, this was an important story, well told. And it is a lesson in negotiations, with a keen understanding of the posturing, the changing strategies, the consultations, the use of supporting players and the creative techniques that finally lead to peace.

The narration was strong. Mark Bramhall did a good job differentiating the players and their accents without ever slipping into caricature.

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Extraordinary events well told

The camp David accords are extraordinary in their mere existence, the story of how they came to be is even more so. While the authors attempts to anchor the conflict in religion is a bit irritating at times it still does not diminish the events or the personalities involved.

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revealing political history

This book is so revealing about the Carter administration & the post WW2 history of the middle east. I remember vaguely this whole event, the Carter peace initiative, but Wright successfully brings the event, the key characters (not just the principals) & the contextual background to life. The book mixes biography of the key players with the main event. Sometimes this feels a little bumpy - it might play more so this way in the audio version, since listener cannot see chapter headings or other transitions that would appear in the physical book. The narrator is excellent.

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Compelling, important book

Terrific story, masterfully told. Wright presents his thoroughly researched material in an effective and impartial manner.

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Great history book. Easily explains much of today.

Great book that easily explains much of today's continuing expanding world-wide chaos. Although I find Carter to have mande countless errors regarding the American economy he remains by far the most thoughtful and considerate president of at least the last 40+ years. Makes sense how Carter immediately somewhat fell in love with Sadat. Sadat was, for the times, and the country, an incredibly wise and considerate man who really believed in fellow human beings and talking to others. One easily sees how totally brainwashed into naive historical narratives and "identity" Begin was. Begin too I can see as being a great person, but as with Communist ideologues, sometimes wonderful people can fall for disastrous ideologues. It is scary to realize that if men like Carter, Sadat, and Begin were not able to make significant steps towards peace, how can we do so now with a senile Biden who is surrounded by the most naive Zionists like Blinken and Sullivan and Nuland and countless others who have expanded the naive good vs. evil to now include countries that get along with critics of Zionism like Russia due to its good relations with Syria and Iran? I mean, the Zionist calamity is just engulfing the whole planet and world leaders are 1/100th as bright and caring as they were 40 years ago. As the book deals with the histories of each men, one gets a nice snapshot of the history of the conflict etc. Just a wonderful book everyone will enjoy.

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Magnificent

With the world in such a mess today it is refreshing to read of a time that the impossible managed to happen. In 1977 President Jimmy Carter saw an opportunity to fulfill his religious destiny by bringing peace to the Holy Land. Rosalynn Carter was the one to suggested using Camp David as an ideal location for a summit. The talks started on September 5 1978.

Carter had his hands full. Israeli Prime Minister Meacham Begin never loosened his tier, nor did his mind stray from the horror of the Holocaust. He was an avid Zionist. Sadat secluded himself from everyone including his own advisors. Carter under estimated the complexity of the situation. Carter believed they could reach an agreement in three days. It took thirteen days instead. Both parties threaten to walk out daily. Carter ran back and forth between them working on a compromise. Carter forgot all his duties and concentrated all his efforts for the thirteen days on brokering an agreement. Wright concludes that it was Carter’s leadership that was the key to the success of the Accords. As a party to the negotiations Carter allowed each side to make concessions to the United States that they couldn’t make to each other. Both Begin and Sadat took extraordinary risks that achieved the peach that last today. Wright reminds us that Carter’s Camp David Accords was an act of surpassing political courage. He won the treaty but lost the presidency.

On the negative side the author’s favoritism toward Carter and Sadat comes through the story clearly. Wright makes some unnecessary remarks about Begin; I feel was inappropriate under the circumstances.

The author has done an excellent job meticulously piecing together from presidential records, diaries, interviews and books on the subject to create this most interesting book. Wright is a Pulitzer Prize winning author. Begin and Sadat received the Nobel Prize for Peace for reaching the Camp David Accords. This peace has now lasted for the past 36 years. Mark Bramhall did an excellent job narrating the book. If you are interested in history of the Middle East this is a must read book.

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Excellent book

Excellent book; well researched and quite informative. Very well done in the audible format. Listened to on cross-country road trip, making the drive more enjoyable.

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Very objective true documentation

One of the most objections insightful and well written books I have ever read
Very enjoyable

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Gripping moment by moment account

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I quite enjoyed this look behind the scenes of the negotiations that led to the Egypt/Israel peace treaty. Wright has a reputation as a fastidious researcher and chronicler of modern middle eastern geopolitics and he doesn't disappoint here. As they say, the devil is in the details and this couldn't be more true not only of the level of detail provided here but also in the fitful negotiations which resulted in the Camp David accord. Wright interweaves his moment by moment account of the thirteen days of negotiations with backgrounder material on the history of the Arab/Israeli conflict as well as the personalities of Sadat, Begin, Carter, Dayan, Weizmann and others and how the interplay of these played a crucial role in not only achieving the accords but just as interesting for the reader, almost derailing them. Of particular note here is the illuminating role (the much maligned, but recently seen in the literary world in a kinder historical light) Jimmy Carter played not only in facilitating the talks but on numerous occasions, saving them when all appeared lost. The end result is is a gripping (I won't say thrilling; that really isn't Wright's style), almost claustrophobic insiders view of the talks as well as a treatise on the art of negotiation, facilitation, and peace making. Anyone despairing of middle eastern politics today would do well to read this book to understand how seemingly intractable differences can be overcome/set aside in the broader pursuit of peace and the role that peacemakers must play in order to achieve it.

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