Pancho

Crammed with incident, humour and high adventure, Pancho is set in 1950s’ Mexico; the coming of age for a boy, and for an old man the enjoyment of his autumn in life. Pancho – the Old Man, the irrepressible, incorrigible, not-so-saintly, self-supposed savant. Young Juan Ramos doesn’t know what he has let himself in for when he joins Pancho and his rancheros during one long, hot, dusty summer on Mexico’s central plateau. During their summer of raucous adventure, Juan finds himself on a rollercoaster of escapades, including halting ruthless convicts terrorising a small pueblo, discovering an abandoned baby, building a mechanical horse, getting trapped in quicksand and putting clampers on an assassination attempt of the nation’s president. For the boy Juan it is an upward learning curve towards maturity, as he fits in with newfound compadres; such as the likes of squint-eyed Cándido, a surrealist; fat Emilio, a somnolent; mean-faced José, the ‘lone silent hombre’; and Julian, a simple soft-souled slow-wit. Life is enriching for Juan through his experiences living and working with the horsemen, particularly the compellingly all-encompassing influence of his hero, friend and mentor, Pancho. It is a hard, though innocent and uncomplicated life. PANCHO portrays the unsophisticated, simple, country-wise folk of a world that no longer exists. The novel will be enjoyed by those looking for a light and warm-hearted read, especially anyone interested in Mexico.