That’s the question that sparked a fascinating and, at times, terrifying journey into the heart of the Middle East during the summer of 2008. It was a trip that began in Egypt, passed beneath the steel and glass high rises of Saudi Arabia, then wound through the bullet- pocked alleyways of Beirut and dusty streets of Damascus, before ending at the cradle of the world’s three major religions: Jerusalem.
Tea with Hezbollah combines nail-biting narrative with the texture of rich historical background, as readers join novelist Ted Dekker and his co-author and Middle East expert, Carl Medearis, on a hair-raising journey. They are with them in every rocky cab ride, late-night border crossing, and back-room conversation as they sit down one-on-one with some of the most notorious leaders of the Arab world. These candid discussions with leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas, with muftis, sheikhs, and ayatollahs, with Osama bin Laden’s brothers, reveal these men to be real people with emotions, fears, and hopes of their own. Along the way, Dekker and Medearis discover surprising answers and even more surprising questions that they could not have anticipated—questions that lead straight to the heart of Middle Eastern conflict.
Although Dekker reminds us in the beginning of the novel that he wishes only to tell about his trips and dish rag the politics and religion talk….he nevertheless engages in an historical backdrop of each region coupled with their Muslim religion and roots, and this I am grateful for. it was like a quick tour through the eyes of Dekker and his friend Carl Medearis. I learned more about the Middle East, than I ever learned in high school history class.
Ted Dekker's writing style is so entertaining and he does a nice job of describing the sights and sounds of the middle east, but I had some questions about some of the things said and done. My review is here:http://bookvisions.blogspot.com/2010/01/tea-with-hezbollah-by-ted-dekker-and.html