Roque Six

Originally published in 1927, this humorous novel tells the adventures of Roque Fernandez, a dull civil servant who dies and instead of arriving in heaven, finds himself reincarnated as Jean Rochestier (Roque Two), who speaks French and has a wife and two children with whom he feels an imposter. The reason for Roque's reincarnation is that he hasn't completed the mission that God set him for his life, but Roque refuses to complete it, causing continual and hilarious deaths and reincarnations, each time as a different person, until he reaches his sixth life. ''Well, we'll see,' said Roque, 'Are you alive or dead?' 'Well now! That's yet to be seen.''. A novel of impressively intelligent and sceptical humour that makes us laugh, but also leaves us with a hint of sadness and melancholy.