A review by oliainchina
From the Holy Mountain: A Journey Among the Christians of the Middle East by William Dalrymple

5.0

From the Holy Mountain by William Dalrymple is a mix of travel writing, history, and journalism. A 6th century account of Levant in hand, the author travels in the footsteps of the two Christian pilgrims, checking on the old Christian communities of present day Greece, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Egypt. The journey takes place in 1991, after the war in Lebanon had ended, and the accounts dedicated to that part of the region are poignant and full of compassion for Christian Palestinians. Those chapters make me cry. From the Holy Mountain is hard to process since it tells a lot about the oppression of minorities (Christian and Islamic), but I liked how Dalrymple manages to lighten the mood of the book and not let it become a depressive story of suffering only. There are funny moments, his witty comments, and forays into the weird history of Christian asceticism (those “saints” living on tops of pillars!).
The main thread that’s going through the book is that of unity: Eastern Christianity and Islam share a lot together and could (and did) coexist peacefully. An important point that Dalrymple makes here is that Arabs and Islam are not synonymous, which people often overlook nowadays. Another thing that strikes me after reading this book is how easy it is to change, rewrite, bury, and manipulate history. One more reason to learn more of it.
Highly recommended if you are interested in the past and present of the Levant.