The middle east conflict is, in my opinion, the hardest problem facing humanity in the whole world. Understanding all the nuances, from both sides could be a major academic undertaking. Getting perspectives from key, leading figures could require incredible access for interviews and a huge amount of research and reading.

Richard North Patterson takes all the boring, grunt work out of this and turns the process into a gripping read with great characters. He's done way more than basic homework, more like a dissertation, but being a great novelist, he's weaved in an education on the middle east conflict that not only provides a satisfying stimulating, stay up until you drop in the middle of the night read, but also a serious education.

My Kudos to Patterson for doing more than just writing a brilliant novel. This book could contribute to progress towards peace.

Amazon reports the book will be available tomorrow, Jan 11, 2007