Young Arabs are too often reduced to the figures of the potential terrorist, the migrant or the exotic icon of the revolution. But the reality is much richer.

Coming from both sides of the Mediterranean, the researchers in this book travel off the beaten track by exploring how young Arabs spend their free time. The case studies take in a wide range of countries, including Morocco, Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, and all manner of activities, from football to rap music, cafe culture to sex work. Drawn with sensitivity and humour, Arab youths presents an exceptional portrait of a generation that is much talked about but rarely listened to.

This book gives a voice to young men and women who, as heirs of plural traditions, animated by new ideas and influenced by various cultural movements, are inventing the future of their societies in the midst of radical change.