This monograph presents an approachable proof of Mirzakhani’s curve counting theorem, both for simple and non-simple curves. Designed to welcome readers to the area, the presentation builds intuition with elementary examples before progressing to rigorous proofs. This approach illuminates new and established results alike, and produces versatile tools for studying the geometry of hyperbolic surfaces, Teichmüller theory, and mapping class groups.

Beginning with the preliminaries of curves and arcs on surfaces, the authors go on to present the theory of geodesic currents in...

This monograph presents an approachable proof of Mirzakhani’s curve counting theorem, both for simple and non-simple curves. Designed to welcome readers to the area, the presentation builds intuition with elementary examples before progressing to rigorous proofs. This approach illuminates new and established results alike, and produces versatile tools for studying the geometry of hyperbolic surfaces, Teichmüller theory, and mapping class groups.

Beginning with the preliminaries of curves and arcs on surfaces, the authors go on to present the theory of geodesic currents in...