Ben-Gurion Looks Back – Moshe Pearlman (1965)
This significant historical work captures a series of in-depth conversations between journalist Moshe Pearlman and David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s founding Prime Minister, conducted during the elder statesman’s retirement at Kibbutz Sde Boker in the Negev desert. The book presents Ben-Gurion’s retrospective analysis of pivotal moments in Israel’s formation – from the early Zionist movement through the 1948 War of Independence and the 1956 Suez Crisis – offering unprecedented insight into his strategic thinking and political philosophy.
Pearlman skillfully draws out Ben-Gurion’s perspectives on nation-building challenges, including military defense, mass immigration absorption, and the tension between secular socialism and Jewish tradition. The dialogues reveal both the visionary’s steadfast principles and his pragmatic compromises, particularly regarding relationships with Arab neighbors and world powers. Notable sections detail his controversial decision to accept partition in 1947, his complex relationship with other Zionist leaders like Chaim Weizmann, and his unfulfilled ambitions for Israel’s scientific and spiritual development.
Published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, the first edition features black-and-white photographic plates documenting Ben-Gurion’s retirement years alongside historical moments. The work stands as an essential primary source for understanding Israel’s founding era, presenting Ben-Gurion’s legacy through his own words while preserving Pearlman’s journalistic observations about the aging leader’s character and daily life in the desert.
For researchers, the book provides crucial context about mid-1960s Israeli historiography, recorded before the transformative Six-Day War would alter regional dynamics. Compared to Ben-Gurion’s formal memoirs, these interviews offer a more spontaneous and reflective portrait of the man behind the statesmanship.
