Performing al-Andalus explores three musical cultures that claim a connection to the music of medieval Iberia, the Islamic kingdom of al-Andalus, known for its complex mix of Arab, North African, Christian, and Jewish influences. Jonathan Holt Shannon shows that the idea of a shared Andalusian heritage animates performers and aficionados in modern-day Syria, Morocco, and Spain, but with varying and sometimes contradictory meanings in different social and political contexts. As he traces the movements of musicians, songs, histories, and memories circulating around the Mediterranean, he argues that attention to such flows offers new insights into the complexities of culture and the nuances of selfhood.

Performing al-Andalus explores three musical cultures that claim a connection to the music of medieval Iberia, the Islamic kingdom of al-Andalus, known for its complex mix of Arab, North African, Christian, and Jewish influences. Jonathan Holt Shannon shows that the idea of a shared Andalusian heritage animates performers and aficionados in modern-day Syria, Morocco, and Spain, but with varying and sometimes contradictory meanings in different social and political contexts. As he traces the movements of musicians, songs, histories, and memories circulating around the Mediterranean, he argues that attention to such flows offers new insights into the complexities of culture and the nuances of selfhood.

David, a Syrian-American living in Damascus, wakes one wintry morning to rare snowfall in the Syrian capital. The snow is a harbinger of things to come as David makes his way through the city streets, where chance encounters not only have the potential to change his life, but could also change the course of Syrian history. Set in Damascus on the eve of the revolutionary transformations that began in March 2011, A Wintry Day offers insights into everyday life in Syria, from music, art, literature, and cuisine, to the nuances of political resistance, state corruption and violence, the Palestinian problem, women's issues, and the complex mosaic of peoples and social classes that make up Syrian society today. A Wintry Day is also a love story revolving around the budding romance of David and Nidal, a Palestinian journalist. It is most of all a paean to the strength and beauty of the Syrian people based on the author's extensive experience in Syria.