Leilah Nadir

Who is Leilah Nadir?

Leilah Nadir is an Iraqi Canadian novelist and writer. Born to an ethnic Assyrian Iraqi Christian father and an English mother, she was raised in Britain and Canada. Nadir holds a Master's degree in English Literature from the University of Edinburgh, and also a Joint Honours Bachelor's degree in English and History from McGill University. She has never been to Iraq

Nadir has previously worked in both London and Vancouver in the publishing industry. Since the US-led invasion of Iraq, she has written numerous articles and broadcast political commentaries for CBC, The Globe and Mail, The Georgia Straight, and she has also published a feature article in Brick magazine. In September 2007, she published The Orange Trees of Baghdad: In Search of My Lost Family, which details her Iraqi father's story and her Iraqi family's experiences since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The book includes family photographs as well as contemporary photos by acclaimed Iraqi Canadian photojournalist Farah Nosh; it was widely praised on publication, notably by Naomi Klein. In July 2008, she won the George Ryga award for Social Awareness in Literature. The Orange Trees of Baghdad was published in Italy, Australia and New Zealand in 2008 and will appear in France in September 2009. Nadir currently lives in Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband and son