BYU NewsNet - 'A View of Jerusalem' from student's eyes

Just this last month, a unique book about life in Jerusalem before and during the second intifada hit the shelves.

The book "A View of Jerusalem" shows how life as a college student in the Holy Land dramatically changed once violent outbreaks between Palestinian rioters and Israeli police erupted in Sept. 2000.

What seems to be the first book of its kind, this series of 38 short stories is gaining interest. Written by a former student of the BYU Jerusalem Center, Erin Tolman tells about her experiences while living in the Holy Land during a violent time.

Tolman attended the Jerusalem Center in the fall semester of 2000, and was one of only 175 students. Even though the center re-opened for limited registration in 2006, Tolman's experiences are anything but common.

"Through the windows in my classroom, I see helicopters patrolling the sky around the city, their repetitive thumping sometimes drowning out the professor," Tolman writes. "The pop of gunfire and the bang of explosions make it difficult to concentrate."

"Lying in bed, I hear gunfire and explosions but am not afraid," she continues. "It seems to be happening in another place, not outside my window."

Tolman never suspected that her dutiful journal writing as a young college student would end up being a book, but when she realized that her experience in Jerusalem was unique, she wanted to share it with the world.

"I hope that through my book, I can bring a piece of Jerusalem to those who haven't been there and bring a piece of it back to those who have," Tolman said when asked what inspired her to write the book.

True to her word, Tolman's book definitely brings Jerusalem to the reader, according to an acquaintance of Tolman's, Katie Kennedy.

"You've been able to bring me to Jerusalem, and though I hope to go there someday myself, I am able to catch a glimpse of what it may be like to be there, which will have to do for now," Kennedy said in an e-mail interview.

To find out more information about Tolman or her new book, visit http://byujc.org.