You have seen his excellent articles, did you know about Franklin Lamb’s books? Last week I received a copy of Israel’s War in Lebanon (South End Press, 1984), which I am keen to read and will post a review here at some point. Coming across his earlier work is like only just discovering the past work of your favourite music band and working back chronologically and finding real treasures. The book, edited by Franklin, features a foreword by Seán MacBride, the IRA Irish statesman who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1974.

Just before I take a blogging break, and prompted by a friend who commented that there was a dearth of information about Dr Franklin Lamb on the web, I thought I would point interested readers who wanted to learn more to Dr Lamb’s books, and can tell you that his forthcoming volume on Hezbollah is coming out in a matter of months. It should be most interesting particularly given recent events, and I understand it has been deliberately delayed for this purpose.

Franklin Lamb’s current book, The price we pay: a quarter-century of Israel’s use of American weapons against civilians in Lebanon (1978-2006), available from Amazon.co.uk and from US-based supplier LebanonBooks.com, has just been translated into Arabic. It is a thorough and indispensable account on the subject, and I will also endeavour to post a review.

WHO IS FRANKLIN LAMB?

It seems my dear friend and site contributor has excited a lot of interest in the webosphere since his dispatches have appeared across various alternative press sites. ‘Who is Franklin Lamb’ posts are sometimes in my page referrals, such as here and here. The comments thread on one of Franklin’s pieces posted at Tom Feeley’s Information Clearing House went ga-ga with anonymous trolls speculating about Franklin.

Franklin holds a law degree from Boston University School of Law and his LLM and PhD from the London School of Economics; he also studied at Cambridge and the Hague Academy of International Law. He spent a year at Harvard Law School after being elected to the Democratic National Committee from Oregon. He worked on the Hill and for Sen. Ted Kennedy’s Presidential Campaign and the House Judiciary Committee. Dr Lamb wrote his volume Israel’s War in Lebanon after he lost his girlfriend and son on April 18, 1983 when the US Embassy in Beirut was car-bombed. He wrote one of the first books on the Sabra-Shatila Massacre. Over the years he has traveled often and widely including many projects in the Middle East. His main academic interest beside Lebanon and the Question of Palestine is China.

I recently spent time with Franklin in Lebanon. As a friend, I fear that what I have to say may almost constitute a hagiography of this man of great intelligence, courage, and good humour: Franklin Lamb is a great friend, an academic and activist, a veritable Renaissance Man and force of nature. He is a researcher and author who often writes articles of contemporary and historical import from Lebanon and about the region, an area in which he has had a long-standing research and personal interest.

While he is busy bunkering down to finish his latest book, I can attest to his mischievous humour, his passion for justice and the fact he lives quite modestly. I will also say that as a freelancer, Franklin does not need to provide an “institutional CV”, and that he definitely does not reside in $300/ night hotels in Beirut as one anonymous impugner-troll suggested, having spent a considerable amount of time with him there.

You can also glean much from his writing, wherein he writes so openly and generously. I recommend starting with his unforgettable Letter to Janet if you are new to his work or if you haven’t yet read this moving and important gem.

I am also most pleased to report that another dear associate, Cathy Sultan, has just released her superlative new (third) book, Tragedy in South Lebanon. Cathy is another force of nature, a wonderful woman and American who lived in Beirut during the Civil War, married to a Lebanese. She has a great web site which I recommend. Check it out.