A.K. Blakemore, The Glutton

From the winner of the 2021 Desmond Elliot Prize comes a novel of desire and destruction set in Revolutionary France and inspired by a true story.

Following Tarare, a peasant violently cast out of his village life, as he travels from the South of France to Paris and beyond, through the heart of the Revolution, The Glutton is an electric, heart-stopping journey into a world of tumult, upheaval and depravity, wherein the hunger of one peasant is matched only by the insatiable demands of the people of France.

This event will include an audience Q&A. After the event there will be an opportunity to get your book signed by the author.

Thursday 13 June, 7.00pm

Venue: Maldon Library, Carmelite House, White Horse Lane, Maldon, CM9 5FW
Tickets: £8 / £7 concessions (Students, Under 27s and Unwaged)
Box Office: essexbookfestival.org.uk or Mercury Theatre 01206 573948

The Glutton by A.K. Blakemore

Paperback published 6 June 2024

Order a copy of The Glutton at bookshop.org

From the winner of the 2021 Desmond Elliot Prize comes a novel of desire and destruction set in Revolutionary France and inspired by a true story.

Sister Perpetue is not to move. She is not to fall asleep. She is to sit, keeping guard over the patient’s room. She has heard the stories of his hunger, which defy belief: that he has eaten all manner of creatures and objects. A child even, if the rumours are to be believed.

But it is hard to believe that this slender, frail man is the one they once called The Great Tarare, The Glutton of Lyon. Before, he was just Tarare. Well-meaning and hopelessly curious, born into a world of brawling and sweet cider, to a bereaved mother and a life of slender means.

The 18th Century is drawing to a close, unrest grips the heart of France and life in the village is soon shaken. When a sudden act of violence sees Tarare cast out and left for dead, his ferocious appetite is ignited, and it’s not long before his extraordinary abilities to eat make him a marvel throughout the land.

Following Tarare as he travels from the South of France to Paris and beyond, through the heart of the Revolution, The Glutton is an electric, heart-stopping journey into a world of tumult, upheaval and depravity, wherein the hunger of one peasant is matched only by the insatiable demands of the people of France.

About the Author

A. K. Blakemore won the Desmond Elliot Prize for her debut novel, The Manningtree Witches. She is also the author of two full-length collections of poetry and has translated the work of Sichuanese poet Yu Yoyo. Her poetry and prose writing has been widely published and anthologised, appearing in the London Review of Books, Poetry, Poetry Review and The White Review, among others.

Photo of A.K. Blakemore © Alice Zoo