Location: United Kingdom
Member Since:
Dec. 08, 2011
Kate Sedgbeer
Smashwords book reviews by Kate Sedgbeer
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End of Summer
on Jan. 05, 2012
End of Summer by Michael Potts is a beautifully written, poignant tale of Jeffrey Conley’s physical and emotional return to the summer his life changed forever. As Jeffrey journeyed back to the location of his childhood, his memories welcomed me in and together we got lost in the joy and pain of life in an ever changing world. I felt privileged to share in a summer that stirred such familiar feelings of bliss and longing, despite being set in a very different time and place to my own youth. The comfort in repetition, the familiarity, the endless days spent with friends and family; all these things contributed to a sense of the eternal summer – something I myself recall with equal fondness and heartache. Having lost someone so instrumental in defining who I am, as so many unfortunately have, I took comfort in Jeffrey’s thoughts and fears, so eloquently portrayed. I found myself rushing through the pages, desperately hoping he would find his answer; the thing that would allow him to face and make sense of what was happening to his life. I guess in that respect I was only going to be disappointed and the panic Jeffrey experiences as he realizes he can no longer hide from death and change is overwhelming. I wish I had a little more time to link the boy to the man. I was intrigued by the adult Jeffrey but found it difficult to merge this character with the young Jeffrey. The ending is uplifting in promoting a positive message of cherishing your memories and finding peace in the knowledge that your loved ones will live on forever in them. I get the sense this must have been a deeply personal, hopefully cleansing piece of writing and I truly admire the author’s honesty.