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The Lines We Draw
The Journalist, the Jew and an Argument About Identity
The Lines We Draw
The Journalist, the Jew and an Argument About Identity
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Description
A moving, deeply empathetic memoir about Jewish family and history, which encourages us all to confront the lines we draw.
As a Jewish journalist covering the Middle East, Tim Franks has over the years been accused of being both a self-hating Jew and an Islamophobe. He always tried to draw a clear line between his identity and his work. Up to the point that he asked himself: is that necessary? Is it such a combustible mix? They were questions he struggled to answer. To begin with, he was a Jew without much of a back-story.
So he set out on a journey for his ancestral roots, one which took him from Constantinople to Curaçao, from Auschwitz to Lithuania to Downing Street. Along the way he challenged how he saw not just himself but the world. This is a moving, deeply empathetic memoir, which encourages us all to confront the lines we draw.
TIM FRANKS presents Newshour on the BBC World Service, with a global audience of millions. He was previously a BBC reporter for almost two decades, including nine years as an award-winning foreign correspondent. He has covered several major conflicts. And spent two years as the BBC's least likely sports correspondent.
Product details
| Published | Sep 02 2025 |
|---|---|
| Format | Hardback |
| Edition | 1st |
| Extent | 304 |
| ISBN | 9781399423083 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Continuum |
| Illustrations | Black and white images throughout. |
| Dimensions | 234 x 153 mm |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
About the contributors
Reviews
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The book is stunning. He is an extraordinary writer. Such erudition. Wisdom. Humanity. And humour. A work of immense generosity at a time when we badly need it.
Fergal Keane, special correspondent, BBC News
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Thought provoking… a most deeply researched family history. And what a history that is.
The Spectator
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What a brave outpouring! Tim Franks' book The Lines We Draw is the light in the dark channel of finding who we are. It opens up a new perspective, showing that identity is no longer defined only by primitive attributes like gender, skin colour, nationality or religion, but by the courage to grow beyond restrictions and recognize the depth and significance of the world beyond ourselves.
Xinran, author of The Promise
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An extraordinary cast of characters, summoned back to life by a reporter with a gift for telling a story.
Jonathan Freedland
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What makes this brilliant, considered book worthwhile is not its breadth but how thoughtful it is.
Stephen Bush, Financial Times
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A taut, satisfyingly woven narrative about being Jewish and a journalist.
Irish Times





















