Current sectionArt & CultureShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeThe cover of "A Historian in Gaza." Credit: Babel / Sharon Rotbard, Itai Ron, DaraqOriginal Hebrew and translated books on Gaza are beginning to appear in Israel, but will Israelis read them? Also: the hottest queer Arab party from Haifa to JaffaAvshalom Halutz10:12 AM • June 02 2026 IDTIsraelis love to think of themselves as am hasefer, "the People of the Book." But actual books are rapidly disappearing from the public space. It has become rare to see someone holding a physical book or reading from a Kindle in cafés or train stations. Who has the time and patience to get lost in words in a country that has remained in a constant state of emergency for years?Loading...Click the alert icon to follow topics:Israel cultureIsrael literatureGazaBenny GantzLGBTQArab IsraelisIsrael-Gaza WarOctober 7Israel's MediaCommentsLoading...In the NewsIn the News: Israel-Iran Live UpdatesBeaufort CastleHezbollahHaaretz BoycottGazaIsrael ElectionsDraft EvasionHaQuizHaaretz PodcastNew York's Cake King Hasn't Forgotten His Israeli Roots'I Read Every Word She Ever Wrote': Alan Berliner on Making His Film 'BENITA''You Culturally Appropriate a Lot. You Also Took Genocide – We Did It First!'Defying War, Boycott and Threats of Censorship, Docaviv 2026 to Open in Tel AvivIn Tel Aviv, an Exhibition Turns Israel's 'Enemies of the State' Into ArtRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIIsrael Orders Unprecedented Seizure of Religious Site From Palestinian AuthorityIsrael 2026 Election Poll Tracker: The Latest ProjectionsWho Built the Biblical-era Fortresses in the Deserts of Israel and Jordan?UN Report Accuses Israeli Forces of Rape, Sexual Abuse of Palestinian DetaineesNot Lapid or Bennett: Could This Former IDF Chief Be Israel's Next Leader?Pentagon Leaks Signal U.S. Effort to Blame Israel for Risks of Renewed Iran War