1968: Memoir and Murder — Andrew Nugent

Young, idealistic and eager for life experience, Andrew and his childhood friend, Eoin, leave Strasbourg, where they are both studying, to embark upon a summer hitch-hiking trip through Normandy and Brittany, escaping the political turbulence of the 1968 Student Revolution. Only one of them returns. Each day going on separate journeys, they meet each evening in the next campsite to share their adventures on the road, relating tales of wartime tribulations and atrocities, and swapping intimate musings, hopes and fears. Much more than simply improving their French, the greater purpose of their adventure is the broadening of their world views by engaging strangers in conversation, and listening to their stories. It is this openness that brings Eoin to his downfall, propelling Andrew on a climactic hunt to find his killer. In this fictionalised memoir, the drama of close friendship and young love is played out against a traumatic murder mystery, and seasoned crime writer Andrew Nugent pens a strikingly tender depiction of friendship and self-discovery. Amidst philosophical reflections on the world as it was then and their place within it sit anecdotes of escapades and encounters, as readers are witness to Andrew's growing sense of self and integrity.