Beyond Dispute

Our debates have become truly toxic, making it hard to understand the positions and outlooks of others, as each group and sector closes itself off and the walls of divisiveness and hostility grow only higher. In today's divisive climate, the approach Daniel Taub offers, that it is actually in difference that the potential for inspiration and creative thinking lies, is as vital as the air we breathe.

We have stopped speaking to each other, because we have also stopped listening. A Good Argument mines the richness of one of the world's most ancient traditions for wisdom about one of our most pressing current problems. Like Daniel Taub himself, this book makes us clearer thinkers, better listeners and more optimistic about the world it is still not too late to fashion.

A timely and inspiring book speaking directly to one of the greatest challenges of our time. A wonderful combination of big-picture wisdom and nitty-gritty practical advice. No-one is better positioned to speak to this issues with hard earned wisdom and menschly humanity.

Beyond Dispute is beautifully written with humour, wonderful anecdotes, and powerful quotes. Using the timeless wisdom of the Old Testament and the Jewish commentaries on the Scriptures, as well as his own experience representing Israel as Ambassador and diplomat at the United Nations, this book is packed full of treasures from both the ancient sources and the modern world.

All too often we see our faith traditions as forces that divide us. This book is a timely reminder that they have the power to bring us together. With deep understanding and concrete examples drawn from a life spent in negotiation and mediation, Daniel Taub shows us how, as individuals and as a society, we can bring the wisdom of our traditions into our hardest conversations.

At a time when civil discourse is under extreme attack, veteran diplomat and lifelong Talmud scholar Daniel Taub has produced perhaps the most important guide ever written to arguing not to vanquish but to reach truth. With wit and wide-ranging expertise, the book helps remind us that those with whom we argue are our opponents, not our enemies -- and sometimes can even, through argument when conducted properly, become our allies and friends.

Daniel Taub makes a compelling case that the wisdom of the Talmud has much to teach us for our toughest negotiations and most difficult conversations. He draws on his experience as a negotiator and diplomat and shows how arguments, done well, can help us learn not only about ideas, but about ourselves.

An essential guide to navigating and mastering the dying art of civil disagreement.

Combining deep knowledge of Jewish tradition with decades of experience as a senior diplomat, Daniel Taub has written a book that is erudite, insightful and unexpectedly hopeful. With its understanding of the power of story to touch the places logic alone cannot reach, it offers an approach to conflict - whether between nations or within a family - that is both readable and practical. It's part Malcolm Gladwell, part Talmudic essay and completely compelling.

At a time when most debates feel more like combat than conversation, Beyond Dispute lands as a deeply relevant and refreshingly hopeful invitation to rediscover the lost craft of argument. Drawing from Jewish tradition-especially the Talmud's reverence for respectful dissent-as well as his own experience in diplomacy, Daniel Taub makes a compelling case: disagreement isn't a threat to avoid or a weapon to wield, but a vital practice to approach with humility and care. Coming from a Jewish background myself, and having spent much of my career in the legal world where argument is both a tool and an art form, this book struck a deeply personal chord. Taub's reminder that real argument isn't about defeating someone, but about understanding them felt both timely and profound. The Jewish tradition's long-standing embrace of many voices and differing views resonates strongly, and Taub does an exceptional job showing how those values can still guide us in today's increasingly fragile public conversations. The book flows with warmth and clarity, blending ancient teachings, lessons from real-life negotiations, and modern social science. Taub's voice throughout is steady and thoughtful, never preaching, always encouraging conversation. He writes the way he wants us to speak: with care, curiosity, and respect. This isn't just for scholars, or folks in politics or diplomacy-it's for anyone who's tired of the shouting and the silencing, and who's searching for a more generous way to talk and to listen. In that sense, Beyond Dispute isn't just a timely read. It's an essential one. - Reader Review

It is a book I would recommend to anyone alive today. - Reader Review