Martyn Pig
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| Author | Kevin Brooks |
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| Original title | Up |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Thriller novel |
| Publisher | The Chicken House |
Publication date | 1 April 2002 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 256 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | 1-905294-16-6 |
| OCLC | 62479349 |
| Followed by | jimmy |
Martyn Pig is a thriller by Kevin Brooks, published on April 1, 2002 by The Chicken House and aimed at teens and young adults. Martyn Pig won the Branford Boase Award in 2003 and was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal in 2002.
Plot
Fourteen-year-old Martyn Pig is faced with some difficult choices in the aftermath of his brutal father's accidental death. While he is relieved at being free from Dad's tyranny, Martyn also feels a degree of guilt over that relief and conflicting emotions about the flirtatious and mysterious quality of the girl next door; the blackmailing machinations of her repulsive boyfriend; and the sudden appearance of a large sum of money. As the narrative explores the moral ambiguities associated with both Martyn' situation and his decisions, it also explores issues related to becoming an adult and the allure of freedom.
Martyn begins the first-person narrative of his story with a description of some of the difficulties that he has faced, including having a drunken and violent father; a mother who disappeared from his life early on because of that father; and a name that has triggered series of taunts and endless bullying. He also sets the stage for the story that follows, describing the events that occur within the week before Christmas Day and an important participant in those events - Alex, the girl next door that Martyn has a crush on.
The actual story begins one night a week before Christmas. During a violent confrontation with Martyn, his drunken father accidentally falls and hits his head. Instead of calling the police, Martyn, afraid that he will believed to be responsible for his father's death and sent to prison, leaves the body where it fell. Later that night, when Alex comes by for one of her regular nightly visits, Martyn tells her what happened. Alex tries to convince him to call the police, but he refuses. The next day, Martyn discovers that his father has inherited thirty thousand pounds. He tells Alex, suggesting that if he goes to the police, there will be no way that he can collect any of the money and telling her that now she is as "guilty" as he is. Still convinced Martyn should call the police, Alex leaves, but returns later that day with her slimy boyfriend Dean, who reveals that he knows everything that happened and that he wants the entire sum of money in order to stay quiet. Martyn agrees to have the money for Dean by the following Monday, but concocts a plan to prevent that from actually happening.
After convincing Martyn's nosy Aunty Jean that Dad is still alive, on the Saturday before Christmas, Martyn and Alex manage to dispose of Dad`s body, putting it into a sleeping bag along with bits of hair and cigarette butts left behind by Dean and dumping the whole load into an abandoned quarry. The following Monday, Martyn is visited again by Dean, but tells him that if Dean makes any attempt to tell the police what he knows about what Alex and Martyn, he (Martyn) will tell the police where to find Dad's body and the evidence that Dean was involved in his (Dad's) death. Dean leaves, defeated.
The next day (Christmas Eve), shortly after discovering that Alex has disappeared, Martyn is visited by the police, who tell him that Dean has been killed in a motorcycle accident, and that there's evidence that Martyn was involved in the death. After taking him to the police station to answer some questions and leaving him alone for the night, Martyn is able to think through everything that's happened, and comes to realize that Alex has betrayed him, and has also stolen the money. He manages to convince the police that he is innocent of everything they suspect him of, although the chief detective seems to harbor lingering doubts, at one point asking Martyn what it feels like to have gotten away with murder. Eventually, Martyn is released into the custody of his aunt.
A year later, Martyn writes that he has received a letter from Alex who is now living in America and beginning a career as an actress. On his end, Martyn seems willing to finally move on with his life.
Characters
Martyn Pig
The protagonist & narrator is Martyn Pig, a fourteen-year-old boy who is living with his father because his mother left years ago. He has to do all the domestic work, because his father is an alcoholic. Martyn reads thrillers, murder mysteries and especially the comics of Sherlock Holmes. He watches his favourite series Inspector Morse, Columbo and Law and Order on the TV. His best friend, Alex, often comes over to spend time with him. He is a naive and thoughtful teenager who is in love with Alex, although he knows that he doesn't have any chance because of her boyfriend. He ends up accidentally killing his father William Pig.
Alexandra Freeman
Alex, a 17-year-old girl and Martyn's best friend, is considered attractive, has long black hair and lives with her mother. They moved into Martyn's neighborhood two years ago. Alex's mother is an actress and as soon as Alex finishes school, she wants to use her inherited talent and become an actress in her mother's footsteps. Alex is self-confident, adept at mimicking voices and is an opportunist. She admits to there being a negative side to the relationship between her and her boyfriend, Dean. At the end of the story Alex murders Dean by cutting the brakes on his bike and frames Martyn for it, she also betrays Martyn and at the end she sends him a letter explaining why. She's very bold.
William Pig
William Pig is Martyn's alcoholic father (also known as Billy Pig in the book). He is described as being a large and unpleasant fellow with oily black hair, ruddy complexion and bloodshot eyes. He has abused Martyn both physically and verbally, and gets his son to clean up all of his messes. At one point in Martyn's life, William was accused by his sister (Martyn's Aunty Jean) of being an unfit parent and, to keep custody of the boy, quit drinking for a short period of time, but he soon went back to his old ways. Martyn accidentally kills William because the peace that he wanted his father never gave him.
Aunty Jean
Aunty Jean is Martyn Pig's aunt She is very strict, Martyn has to live with her because of the death of his father. She is not liked by Martyn.
Dean West
Dean is Alex's boyfriend. He is described as having a lank blonde-coloured ponytail, pasty skin and washy eyes. He has a very negative personality, rides his motorcycle frequently and wears black leather. He becomes jealous of Martyn and Alex's relationship and tries to blackmail them into giving him money. Near the end of the story, Alex cuts Dean's brake line on his motorcycle and Dean ends up dead.
