The Dead Sea and the Jordan River [Hardcover]

For centuries travelers have been drawn to the stunning and mysterious Dead Sea and Jordan River, a region which is unlike any other on earth in its religious and historical significance. In this exceptionally engaging and readable book, Barbara Kreiger chronicles the natural and human history of these storied bodies of water, drawing on accounts by travelers, pilgrims, and explorers from ancient times to the present. She conveys the blend of spiritual, touristic, and scientific motivations that have driven exploration and describes the modern exploitation of the lake and the surrounding area through mineral extraction and agriculture. Today, both lake and river are in crisis, and stewardship of these water resources is bound up with political conflicts in the region. The Dead Sea and the Jordan River combines history, literature, travelogue, and natural history in a way that makes it hard to put down.

The Dead Sea and the Jordan River may not be standard reading material for those interested in books about Israel but its format as part travelogue, part history, and part review of the challenges facing this unique natural phenomenon makes it hard to put down.In its sweep of history, Kreigers book conveys a powerful sense of how the world was once viewed, as a source of never-ending wonder tinged with divinity, how that view shifted to accommodate the curiosity we call science and above all how, throughout several inventive millennia, the practice of subjugation has scarcely changed.When I set out to?shoot a CNN?documentary on the demise of holy?water in the Holy Land, I scoured bookstores and search engines for the best resource material available. A few chapters into Barbara's work, I knew I'd found my definitive source. She kindly agreed?to join our production as an expert and guide and from the?wadis?of Jordan to the top of?Masada,?we?were?fortunate to?soak up her knowledge and passion.?The Dead Sea is a place few people forget but often misunderstand. Thil“B