Martyn Pig

Martyn Pig
Author(s)	Kevin Brooks
Original title	Martyn Pig
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Genre(s)	Thriller novel
Publisher	The Chicken House
Publication date	1 April 2002
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages	256 pp (first edition, hardback)
ISBN	1905294166
OCLC Number	62479349

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.

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 accidentally ends up killing his father William Pig.

Alex

Alex, a sixteen-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 neighbourhood 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.

William Pig

William Pig is Martyn's father and an alcoholic. He is described as being a large and unpleasant man 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 father and, to keep custody of Martyn, quit drinking for a short period of time.

Aunty Jean

Aunty Jean is William Pig's sister. She is an alcoholic like her brother, though she tries to hide the fact. Martyn describes her as a cold, hard, furious and mean woman. She tries to gain custody of Martyn when William is accused of being an unfit father. After William's death, Martyn is sent to live with her.

Dean

Dean is Alex's boyfriend. He is described as having a lank dark coloured ponytail, pasty skin and watery 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 Deans brake line on his Motorcycle and Dean ends up dead.