Article in the Journal of NEw Zealand Studies

The June issue of the Journal of New Zealand Studies features an article by Josh, entitled '"Certainly getting about the world": New Zealanders' Experience of the Middle East as a Place during the Second World War'.
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The article uses diaries, letters and soldier publications, and focuses on how New Zealanders saw the Middle East as a place, through the lenses of the desert, the city, the Holy Land and the ancient world.  When New Zealand’s Middle Eastern war is discussed, the focus is usually on combat and the lives of New Zealanders on the battlefield. The limited discussion of life behind the lines is dominated by a picture of racism, drunkenness and debauchery with its focal point in Cairo. Josh argues that this is an entirely inadequate representation of New Zealanders' engagement with the Middle East during the war. Instead, his article reveals a complex and rich picture of respect and loathing, delight and disgust, wonder and disillusionment.

The article is available to read and download for free here: https://ojs.victoria.ac.nz/jnzs/article/view/6501