Starting on November 29 and running through December 5, publishers from around the world have made dozens of books about Israel and Palestine free for download. These ebooks and more will pair with many live conversations and teach-ins in person and online.
Even before the Hamas massacre of around 1,200 Israelis (and abduction of hundreds more) on October 8—resulting in devastating retaliation from Israel—Palestinians in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza have faced inhumane treatment due to the ongoing Israeli Apartheid. Anti-Zionist activists have sought to uplift the voices of Palestinians largely ignored for decades. While organizations like Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and IfNotNow organize on the ground in the U.S., others spread awareness abroad through literature and fighting censorship. That’s where organizations like Publishers for Palestine (PFP) and—the longer running—Librarians & Archivists for Palestine (LAP) come in.
Publishers for Palestine is a global collective of publishers, and others who work in publishing around the world, who stand for justice, freedom of expression, and the power of the written word.
On November 3, PFP posted an open letter with signatories from around the world. In addition to calling for the end of violence, they blasted the book world for censoring journalists, artists, authors, and more using their platform to call for peace. PFP called the current bombing campaign what it is—a genocide and continued ethnic cleansing. Now, they’re hosting a large week-long reading event that began on 45th annual International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People. Here, they’ve made 35+ books about Israel and Palestine temporarily free. All you need to do is add the $0.00 item to cart, check out, and download.
Free books on Palestine
While most of these books are available in English (28), the list provides reading material across eight other languages. These include French, Greek, Spanish, Castellano, Arabic, Slovenian, Indonesian, and Polish. The categories include fiction, poetry, and literary non-fiction. However, the biggest selection comes in historical, economic, and social non-fiction. Most of these titles are also very contemporary, too. Many were published in the last few years by Jewish and Arab people of many faiths and nationalities.
Since first learning about Israel’s founding and occupation a few years ago, I’ve come to see this as a common trend. A lot of scholarship on (and activism against) Zionism and Israeli Apartheid comes from Jewish and Arab experts. Of course, this is in part because they have the strongest personal connection to the issue. Also, the violence enacted by organizations like Hamas and countries like Israel, the U.S., and more is done in their name. It’s done by weaponizing their grief and fear of the tangible harms that come with overlapping oppressions.
Alongside the books, PFP arranged free access to magazines and more. This includes Science for the People’s back catalog—PFP points to Science Under Occupation as a relevant issue. The publication that led the open letter against the Frankfurt Book Festival following its treatment of Adania Shibli, ArabLit Quarterly, made its Football issue free. Other English materials include Mizna’s issue on Palestine and La Platica del Norte’s issue on coastal dwellers. The issue contains an essay by Jewish Mexican writer Yoly Zentella called What Is Palestine?: The anti-Zionist Jewish Voice.
Free events and beyond #ReadPalestine week
Throughout the next few days, PFP is also hosting live events in person and online in tandem with the reading. This includes a BookTok discussion with author Rashid Khalidi moderated by Texas author and activist Sim Kern.
- TODAY: “How To Talk About Gaza Right Now” teach in with Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah & Dr Lana Tatour.
- Dec. 2: Radical Books Collective reading Palestine session, Men in the Sun by Ghassan Kanafani
- Dec. 3: An Environmental Nakba: The Climate Crisis in Gaza with Mazin B. Qumsiyeh & Mohammad A. Abusarhan
- Dec. 4: “Who Remembers?” Armenian-Palestinian Solidarities: A Reading
- Dec. 10: Author Sim Kern Talks With Sashid Khaldid on The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine
- Dec. 12: Poets Against War!’ fundraising poetry event featuring 15 poets from Montreal’s Palestinian, Lebanese, Iranian, Egyptian, Moroccan, Syrian, Jewish, Indian, Filipino, First Nations, English and French communities.
If you’re learning about this past December 5, 2024, don’t worry! For one, some of these publishers might extend the free download date. This includes open access academic articles and magazine issues. Also, at the very bottom of the list, there are links to reading material that’s already free! Furthermore PFP collected a series of reading lists from literary, academic, and activists organizations. If you can’t afford the books, you can request your local library add them to the collection so you can check them out.
(via Publishers For Palestine, featured image: Publishers For Palestine)
