Hello, I'm an IB student who's writing his Internal Assessment about the role played by Britain in bringing about the State of Israel, as well as its motives for the actions it took in doing so. I'm going to need to study up for this though, so I thought to ask you guys for recommendations for balanced, thorough books on the subject. It's an additional plus if the author is moderately well-known as I have to evaluate some of my sources too. I've been considering, among others, the books "Britain's Moment in Palestine: Retrospect and Perspectives" by Michael J. Cohen and "1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War" by Benny Morris. Would these be good candidates?
Another problem is that my city's university's library doesn't have many of these books so I need to find alternative methods of gaining access to them. Any advice on this would also be welcome.
I'm afraid I've never looked at the books you've mentioned, but after a quick look they seem valid enough to use. Just remember to take note of the position they may hold, especially with their background (Benny Morris is an Israeli historian). N.B. I don't know the positions they hold.
Also, the following book is one worth looking at, especially at the origins of British Zionism for the re-establishment of Israel. The Lord Shaftesbury, Anthony Cooper, is arguably the most influential evangelical politician of 1830-40s in Britain which is where the idea stemmed from.
Lewis, Donald M. The Origins of Christian Zionism: Lord Shaftesbury and Evangelical Support for a Jewish Homeland (Cambridge: C.U.P., 2010)
http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Origins-Christian-Zionism-Shaftesbury/dp/1107631963