Martyn Pig is a thriller by Kevin Brooks

Kevin Brooks (writer)

Kevin M. Brooks is an English author best known for his novels Lucas and Martyn Pig .- Johnny Delgado Series:...

, published on April 1, 2002 by The Chicken House and aimed at teens

Adolescence

Adolescence is a transitional stage of physical and mental human development generally occurring between puberty and legal adulthood , but largely characterized as beginning and ending with the teenage stage...

 and young adults

Young adult literature

Young-adult fiction or young adult literature , also juvenile fiction, is fiction written for, published for, or marketed to adolescents and young adults, roughly ages 14 to 21. The Young Adult Library Services of the American Library Association defines a young adult as "someone between the...

. Martyn Pig won the Branford Boase Award

Branford Boase Award

The Branford Boase Award is a British literary award presented annually to an outstanding novel for young people by a first-time writer.Wendy Boase, Editorial Director of Walker Books and Henrietta Branford worked together previously to produce a great number of books. Both Wendy Boase and...

 in 2003

2003 in literature

The year 2003 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-New books:*Peter Ackroyd - The Clerkenwell Tales*Atsuko Asano - No...

 and was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal

Carnegie Medal

The Carnegie Medal is a literary award established in 1936 in honour of Scottish philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and given annually to an outstanding book for children and young adults. It is awarded by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals...

 in 2002

2002 in literature

The year 2002 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*March 16: Authorities in Saudi Arabia arrested and jailed poet Abdul Mohsen Musalam and fired a newspaper editor following the publication of Musalam's poem The Corrupt on Earth that criticized the state's Islamic...

.

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.