Here is my lone contribution for Novellas in November, but it’s a great one!
Pascalet grows up free on a farm in southern France, but his parents always tell him to stay away from the river. Of course, that means he is drawn to it, so while his parents are away and he’s in the charge of his aunt, he sneaks down to the river early in the morning.
There, he scrambles into a boat at the edge of the water and listens and looks, going into a sort of enraptured trance. Next thing he knows, his boat has drifted into the current. He is helpless, with no oars, until the boat comes aground on a small island.
On the island he spies on a gypsy camp, and there he sees a boy brought in and tied up. He waits for night, and when everyone is asleep, he cuts the boy free and they run away, stealing the gypsy’s boat. Pascalet and his new friend, Gatzo, begin living along the river.
This is a gorgeous, dreamy novella that fills your mind with the sights and even smells of the river. It is so evocative and beautifully written. The life along the river is minutely observed. It’s a lovely book.
I received this book from the publishers in exchange for a free and fair review.
whatmeread 
Sounds very Huckleberry Finn-ish!
Sort of. It is compared to that.
Sounds good, a boys adventure with some serious undertones. I will note it for novnov, probably for next year. Or, pick it up when I need something thinner to read.