JERUSALEM WALKS by Nitza Rosovsky (Henry...

JERUSALEM WALKS by Nitza Rosovsky (Henry Holt: $14.95, illustrated). A native of the city, Rosovsky juggles the roles of historian, travel agent and old-fashioned yenta in this conversational guide. The six short walks she describes take the reader through the long and often contentious history of a city that is sacred to three of the world’s great religions: In the course of a one-mile stroll, visitors can see Jewish, Roman, Crusader and Ottoman ruins amid the television antennas and paraphernalia of modern life. Rosovsky’s obvious love for Jerusalem doesn’t prevent her from debunking some popular local myths. Some 19th-Century writers believed King David first saw Uriah’s wife bathing in the “Pool of Bathsheba” in the Christian Quarter; it’s actually part of a later water system. In addition, Rosovsky offers very sensible advice for avoiding the powerful Middle Eastern sun, respecting the sensibilities of Jerusalem’s diverse religious communities and coping with potentially volatile crowds.