When Pepper Roux was born his sadistic, but seemingly pious Aunt Mireille, foretold, after seeing a vision from St Constance, that he would not live past 14 years of age. Consequently, throughout his childhood his parents haven't bothered with this ‘le pauvre’ much, knowing that his life would be short-lived. But when Pepper wakes up on his 14th birthday, believing that this will be the day that he'll die, he decides to set off to sea in an attempt to avoid death for as long as possible.
As time goes on Pepper steps into many roles and personas all in his endeavour to stay one step ahead of death.
Pepper hides out in other people's identities. He becomes his own father – a drunken sea captain – a telegram boy, a Carmargue "guardian", a journalist and a foreign legionnaire. He meets sailors, scamsters, prostitutes and a cross-dressing first mate. But no matter where he goes, Death is always just around the corner.
The book is a brilliant blend of the dark and deep, as well as the lightly comic. "People see what they expect to see, don't they?" is a constant reference in the book.
It's a blend of Harry Potter, I Am David and one or two other stories for young adults. But it does achieve a unique voice. I was haunted my it until I took a weekend off to just curl up and complete the book in one sitting.
Brilliant!
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