Makbara Pa

In Arabic, the word 'Makbara' refers to those parts of North African cemeteries where young couples go to get away from their elders and hang out. A celebration of amour fou, Makbara reveals Goytisolo's deep love for Arab culture seen as sensuous and lewd in contrast to the drab sterility of the West. In a series of scenes, pastiches, and travelling shots, Goytisolo exposes cultural, sexual, and political oppression. The author's message, delivered in polyphonic style, is of liberation through sex which, as he says, "is above all freedom."

Born in Barcelona in 1931, Juan Goytisolo has lived a life of political and cultural exile. A bitter opponent of the Franco regime, his early works were banned in Spain. Goytisolo currently lives in Morocco. He is the award-winning author of over twenty books, including the novels Quarantine, Marks of Identity, and Juan the Landless, all of which have been translated into English and published by, or are forthcoming from, Dalkey Archive.