Catalan writer, Max Besora, talks about his satirical novel which traces the life of Joan Orpí, one of the most unknown, yet fascinating, characters in Spanish history. In his torrential book, The Adventures and Misadventures of the Extraordinary and Admirable Joan Orpí, Conquistador and Founder of New Catalonia, we learn all about the odyssey that brought him first to Barcelona, later to Sevilla, and finally to America, where he experiences a series of outlandish situations.

Using historical facts as raw material, and with stellar appearances of characters such as Miguel de Cervantes or the brigand Serrallonga, among others, Besora converses with the satirical tradition of works such as Gargantua and Pantagruel, Gulliver's Travels, or Don Quixote, to paint a fresco of Catalonia in the seventeenth century and the Golden Age of the Spanish empire, creating a novel that is fresh, sharp, and bursting with exuberant adventures.

Max Besora talks with Charles Foran (Planet Lolita) about The Adventures and Misadventures of Joan Orpí, his triumphant, playful masterpiece.

Translated from the Catalan by Mara Faye Lethem.

About this event’s guests:
Max Besora
Charles Foran

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Max Besora: The Adventures and Misadventures of Joan Orpí