As an advocate of Palestinian rights, I read a lot of books about Palestine. The problem is, I rarely finish reading them. (It's not just when the topic is Palestine but right now my focus in terms of advocacy is Palestine so I will describe my experience through that lens.) I can read articles on the internet or magazines but reading anything book-length will usually mean another book about Palestine on shelf that remains half read. There are about 8 books right now, the first one being 'Out of Place' by Edward Said, a memoir of a life lived in exile. The current book I can't finish reading is Saree Makdisi's 'Palestine Inside Out, An Everyday Occupation'.
Why can't I finish reading this book? Well, it's hard for me to get through the relentless stories of misery and suffering, which is basically the Palestinian experience for the last 63 years. In the first chapter, 'Outsides', we have the Wall expropriating Palestinians land in the OPT, farmers who can't reach their crops and their subsequent impoverishment, Israel refusal of permits to reach one's land/job/school, Ottoman laws used to expropriate Palesinian land, 40% of the land in the OPT is taken up by Israeli infrastructure including settlements, roads and military outposts and how all this is in violation of the Geneva Convention.
Skipping forward, there are lists of checkpoints and roadblocks, Israeli soldiers quoted as saying 'I was ashamed of myself the day I realized that I simply enjoy the feeling of power' (p.53) to show the abusiveness of the treatment of Palestinians. There's a recounting of the economic impact of the checkpoints and the closure system, how farmers are being impoverished and people in larger towns don't have access to fresh fruits and vegetables within the West Bank because permits are too hard to get, land is too hard to get to. How everything needs permits - people, cars, donkeys. The 2004 World Bank report states poverty levels are rising and 16% of the population cannot afford basic necessities for subsistence (p 61). There are more lists, one of them showing that the annual cost of a permit is $454 but the per capita income in the OPT is $1200 (p63). There's more about the problems faced by Jersusalem residents and how Israel attempts to gain a demographic advantage there through a myriad of policies. and how a Jewish foothold in Hebron is maintained at the expense of the local population. And there's a bit about the 2000 peace talks, about how Israel wants the land but not the people.
And so it goes.