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production takes place makes finding a common denom- Jdidi expresses not only an ambivalent regard towards the
inator a herculean task. Is there one market for Hispano- colonial era, but a comparable discontent with the Moroc-
phone cultural production or several? Are we talking about co that emerged after independence.
one cultural phenomenon or several? One could argue that Chapter 3, “Repensar el involucramiento de la mujer ma-
Mohammad Sabbag in the 1970s appealed to a national and rroquí en el ámbito poscolonial,” explores the moderniza-
international audience just like Najat El Hachmi appeals tion of the role of women in contemporary Morocco. The
to a national and international audience today, but their New Family Code approved by the Moroccan government
work clearly responds to different historical contexts and in 2003 aimed to enshrine the legal rights of Moroccan
different articulations of ethnic and national identity. Sab- women, although the writings of female writers like Kari-
bag was a product of colonial Morocco, and El Hachmi of a ma Toufali and Sanae Chairi or men like Larbi El Harti in-
postimperial Spain still struggling to come to terms with its dicate that there is still a long way to go. Interestingly, El
own cultural diversity. Ricci is well aware of this, and yet, Harti seems more attuned to feminist vindications than his
the need to provide a critical discourse that can embrace the female counterparts. It is this kind of paradox that makes
multiple realities expressed by Maghrebian Hispanophone Maghrebian Hispanophone literature, in my opinion, in-
literature remains a driving force throughout ¡Hay moros en teresting.
la costa! Chapter 4, “Mohamed Lahchiri y Sergio Barce Gallar-
Chapter 1, “Poesía y narrativa social e independentista do: epítomes del escritor fronterizo,” presents both writ-
escrita en castellano,” offers an overview of the Hispano- ers as exponents of interstitial writing. Lachiri as a Mus-
phone literature written by Moroccans in Castilian during lim Moroccan and Barce as a Christian Spaniard are both
the Spanish Protectorate. Not surprisingly, many of the connected to the in-between space defined by Bhabha and
works published during this period, often in journals that Anzaldúa. This is one of Ricci’s most interesting chapters in
are politically aligned with the colonial authorities, express that it speculates about the fact that both cultural traditions
appreciation for the civilizing mission carried out by the are structured around the liminal space that separates them.
Spaniards. Many of these writers contribute to propagate Chapter 5, “Regreso a Al-Andalus en ‘patera’” continues
the Hispanotropicalist discourse of Hispano-Moroccan exploring the work of other Hispanophone writers like El
brotherhood that characterized Spanish colonialism. Fathi, Amrani and Sibari as examples of interstitial writing.
Chapter 2, “‘Desventuras de la conciencia nacional’ y The comparisons with Anzaldúa’s and Bhabha’s hybridity
nostalgias de Al-Andalus,” analyzes the colonial nostalgia canon become Ricci’s main focus of attention in the second
expressed by many of the Maghrebian Hispanophone writ- half of the book.
ers in post-independence Morocco. The nostalgic discourse Chapter 6, “Literatura marroquí fronteriza- Literatura
in the work of Mohamed Chakor, Ahmed Mgara and Said sin fronteras: Ahmed Ararou,” presents Ararou’s work as the
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Revist a de alces XXI Número 2 , 2014-2015
