Summertime Blues
“She told me everything I’d ever want to know about the lake, and I wished that someone would teach me how to talk with girls.”
Peter, Summertime Blues
Summertime Blues by follows the coming-of-age story of Peter Bennings during the '60's as he weaves his way through high school and the sturm und drang of the teenage years. The novel simultaneously traces the “British invasion” and the emergence of the relatively new genre of music, Rock and Roll, and the impact of that music on Peter’s journey of discovery. Peter’s universal appeal, though, rests in his quest for answers to the ubiquitous questions about girls and sex and dating and parental restrictions that no one will help answer. With disappointment and the shattering of his dreams, Peter escapes into music, booze, and sexual adventures. As J. D. Salinger infamously created a complex and tragic character in Holden Caulfield, so too does B. R. Fleming create in Peter a complex character searching for himself and for the answers to his life questions. Peter's journey will surely evoke memories for many teens today who can relate to Peter's conflict with the absurdities of dealing with adults. And for those who recall the shift in music during the '60's, Peter's adventures as a musician will revive the music associated with the era.
Look Who's Talking . . .
Apr 18, 2014 @BFScreenwriter "I've just finished reading your book, Summertime Blues, and I loved it...what a great story, beautifully written! I enjoyed the preview on #Smashwords and wanted to read more. My first ebook, and a great buy. Thanks!"
eatmy antipoetry @auntypoetry
"The music of our coming of age sticks with us for our entire lives. "Summertime Blues" is a coming of age story of young Peter Bennings. Reaching the age of thirteen, the world seems a lot more confusing to Peter, as the allure of sex pulls him over, and in the 1960s, the allure of drugs and rock and roll strike as well. "Summertime Blues" is a bittersweet look back on the sixties, and what it was like growing into a young man with the Vietnam War on the horizon."
"I just finished this book by local writer B.R. Fleming. It transported me back to my wonderful summers as a youth influenced and inspired by the "Soundtrack of My Life". It chronicles the coming of age of a teenage boy in Little Rock Arkansas during the British Invasion and Psychedelic Era. . . . Most young males of that era can relate to Peter's journey and the connection to Music. Great Summer Read."
Bob Goodman, KSBR Radio Host "A Whole 'Nuther Thing"
"B.R. Fleming takes us on a journey with Peter as he goes through the age of self discovery, quest for independence, following his dreams, drinking and having to stumble through the ever challenging issue of liking girls and trying to understand them. . . .
B.R. Fleming writes in a way that the reader feels like they are also experiencing every challenge that Peter goes through. . . . Over all this e-book Summertime Blues for me, brought back some awkward moments of being a teenage boy in high school. Also the wish that girls who were teenagers when I was one, that they might have read this e-book so they would learn how hard it is for teen age boys to understand how they think and why they act the way they do sometimes. For this and the story of a boy's self discovery of where he fits in amongst his family, school and friends, I give the e-book Summertime Blues four out of four stars."
