He holds a Ph.D in French literature from the University of Virginia and a Doctorate in American literature from the University of Toulouse. His academic research focuses on contemporary French studies, Maghreb literatures in French and postcolonial studies. He has published extensively on questions pertaining to cultural representations and literary constructions and on issues regarding identity and identification, both in France and the Maghreb. His second book Of Lesser Truths. Orientalism, France and the Maghreb is due out fall 2010.