In spring 2008 Dick Cheney alluded to the US's commitment to Israeli security as “enduring and unshakeable.” Why is this hotly debated? Mearsheimer and Walt's controversial The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy (2007) ascribes it to a seemingly all-powerful interest group. During the Cold War the view was posited that Israel acted as a key American proxy to counter Soviet Arab proxies but this no longer applies. Israel has no oil and by aligning with her since the Six Day War the US has ensured it is the most loathed outside power involved in the Middle East.

Elizabeth Stephens comes up with a more nuanced explanation that places the onus on political culture. Her sober and penetrating analysis takes in a much longer sweep than Mearsheimer and Walt and is refreshingly free of polemics. Unlike many doctoral theses this one has transmuted into book form with ease. Indeed Stephens's overview of US policy towards Israel from 1945 to 1991 is a joy to read.

Political culture is defined as “the ideas, values and images which are transmitted from one generation to another and serve to shape the way of life of the society.” Unlike the Arab world, Stephens demonstrates that Israel is perceived to share core American values, especially freedom and democracy. Americans and Israelis are seen as having parallel experiences in forging their nationhood. Stephens identifies the Holocaust as a seminal influence in ensuring a sympathetic response to Israel's predicament. It seeped into the American consciousness through the Eichmann trial and a series of movies and television dramas.

One of the many strengths of this absorbing book is that the religious upbringing of Presidents is explored. Lyndon Johnson, raised on Bible stories, believed in the right of the Jews to their own homeland and considered Islam incompatible with American political culture. Richard Nixon also underwent a religious immersion and saw Jews as congenial outsiders, appointing several to key posts in his administration. Ronald Reagan quoted the Bible and, despite differences, the special relationship blossomed during his tenure of the White House. Editing horrific footage of the Nazi concentration camps imbued him with a moral obligation to ensure there was no repeat of the Holocaust.

George Bush Senior is seen as the least pro-Israeli president post-1967. Nevertheless, pro-Jewish members of the State Department countered their leader's apathy and the peace process was galvanized by the Madrid initiative whereby Washington engineered face-to-face talks between Arabs and Israelis. Warmer relations with Yitzhak Rabin, the incoming Israeli Labour premier in 1992, might well have still led on to the Oslo Accords had Bush been re-elected.

That he was not re-elected owed much to Bush's failure to attract Christian evangelical support. In her concluding chapter, an overview of the period from 1990 to May 2005, Stephens convincingly asserts that this constituency has come to exert a critical influence. Indeed, its uncritical support of Israel derives from the belief that Israel's rebirth is the fulfilment of biblical prophecy. Bush Junior's espousal of Christian values saw him win over the evangelicals, which, unlike his father, secured a second term notwithstanding the Iraq debacle.

Written with aplomb, US Policy towards Israel is engaging and replete with measured judgements. Wisely it does not claim that political culture provides a one-size-fits-all explanation for the special US–Israeli relationship, but it does succeed in demonstrating that underlying historical, cultural and religious affinities brought the bonding to fruition and ensure its continuance. In short, it is an outstanding debut from an astute author who will go far, and it comes highly recommended.