Person

I am a cultural, social, and transnational historian of the modern Middle East. My research focuses on the history of leisure, gender and sexuality, historically inflected media studies, and Jewish life in the modern Middle East. I focus mainly on twentieth century Iraq, but my work simultaneously explores transnational and global connections beyond the Middle East. My research interests converge in my book manuscript, Idle Days and Nights: Leisure, Entertainment, and Everyday Life in Modern Iraq. Examining Iraqi history through the lens of leisure, it offers entirely novel perspectives on a country whose modern history is often narrated through battles, sectarian conflicts, and failed attempts to create a democratic society.