I AM CHOCOLATE!

Written by Bénédicte Rivière.
13 × 20, 111 pages, softcover.
Public aimed: 9+
Genre: Novel
Keywords: CIRCUS | CLOWN | FRIENDSHIP | IMMIGRATION | THE NAUGHTY NINETIES
Rights available: WORLDWIDE

My name is Rafael and I was born in Cuba. I am the son of runaway slaves. When I was a child, I lived in Havana, at Old Jaba’s house. But one day, she sold me to a Portuguese merchant. To reassure me, she told me that I would be free once in Europe, that slavery did not exist there. And here I am on a boat, sailing towards the Old Continent ! It is on this ship’s deck that I found Habana, my seagull. She was injured, so I healed her. Quickly, she shared all my adventures. Because my life has been incredible ! I, the slaves’ son, the child everybody used to point at, I was going to be the first black artist to become famous and be applauded by the Paris smart set…

From Cuba to Paris, including Bilbao, discover the heart-rending destiny of Rafael, known as Chocolate, the very first black clown to be successful in Europe. If it is in Paris that Chocolate embraced an artistic career, it is in Spain, his welcome land, that everything began. Nicknamed on his arrival on the continent “El Rubio”, the young boy reveals his acting and dancing skills for the first time in Bilbao.

The story has been adapted in 2016, in the eponym movie Monsieur Chocolat where Omar Sy plays the famous artist.

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