Shapira is a historian of Zionism and modern Israel and a professor emerita at Tel Aviv University. Her books include 2012 National Jewish Book Award winner Israel: A History and biographies of Berl Katznelson, David Ben-Gurion, Yigal Allon and Yosef Haim Brenner. She founded the Yitzhak Rabin Center and led the Weizmann Institute for the Study of Zionism at Tel Aviv University. She was awarded the Israel Prize in 2008 for her work in Jewish history.
