Pamela Toler's Biography

I specialize in writing about history, popular culture, and the arts, with an emphasis on quirky stories that make readers say "Wow, I didn't know that."  I've published on topics as diverse as Siberian reindeer hair embroidery, Matt Damon, World War I recruiting posters, pyramid cults, the mud mosques of West Africa, the first translation of the Arabian Nights,and the history of absinthe.

I approach stories with excellent research skills, a red-hot library card, and a large bump of curiosity. I'm particularly interested in the times and places where cultures touch and change each other. I have a PhD in South Asian history (India and Pakistan to you), with a secondary concentration in Islamic history.  I'm currently working on the impact of Islam on western culture.