getting the facts straight
This book sets out to disabuse the reader of the notion that the israelis are the biological/national descendants of the Biblical Israelites. It separately covers Sephardim, Ashkenazim and Mizrahim, and in one section follows the Biblical Israelites (called, for reasons explained, "Judeans") down to the modern Palestinians. The book is full of interesting information, but does not emphasize the missionary nature of Biblical Israel. The explanation of how we got the misunderstanding that "Jews" are biological descendants of the Biblical Israelites is rather complicated and, I think, a little weak, but it will do till a better explanation comes up. I think the book would have come out rather differently had a Christian written it - for instance, Sand ignores the long Christian history of the Palestinians. Also, I suspect that the Bible is more accurate than here supposed about the relation of the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel.
