Words of the Week: Harvey Freedenberg, on Tony Judt

“Because Judt’s fearless opinions are expressed so pointedly and with such passion, it’s unlikely readers will ever find themselves in total agreement with him. But whether one adopts or rejects his worldview, this invigorating dialogue grants us the privilege of encountering a fertile mind in all its vibrancy, gone far too soon.”

Source: Harvey Freedenberg’s Shelf Awareness review of Thinking the Twentieth Century, by Tony Judt with Timothy Snyder. I’m grateful to Harvey helping me articulate some of my own complicated feelings about Judt and his work, which I first encountered (and admired) as a student of European history, but later shrank from when it came to Judt’s take on Israel.