My Brother Yves

It describes the friendship between French naval officer Pierre Loti and a hard drinking Breton sailor Yves Kermadec during the 1870s and 80s.

It was probably Loti's best-known book,[1] and its descriptions of Breton seafaring life, on board ship and on shore, set the tone for his later acclaimed work An Iceland Fisherman (1886).

The fictional Yves was, in reality, Loti's friend, the Breton sailor Pierre le Cor, whom he had sailed with on a number of voyages.

The two often spent time ashore either gambling, brawling, scheming childish pranks, or roaming the countryside of Brittany where le Cor introduced Loti to the lore of the Breton culture.

Although the novel has raised questions about whether Loti might have been describing a homosexual relationship,[2] it is clear from the book that Yves (and, thus, Pierre le Cor) was first and foremost a companion and friend.