A Review Of One Hot Summer By Ian Barker

SUMMARY: John Burton is seventeen, it’s the long hot British summer of 1976 and his life is about to change, in ways he has carefully planned, and ways he cannot yet know, as he embarks on a roller-coaster journey to maturity.

The BookViral Review:

Humorous, touching and brimming with energy, One Hot Summer spins something completely original out of something familiar as Barker captures a perfectly framed snapshot of teenage angst, life, love and death amidst the soaring summer temperatures of 1976.

One Hot Summer is what our rapturous, heartrending and soul-spinning adolescent years are all about. Far much more than the standard, cranked-out genre piece it takes an acerbic mind to deliver this kind of coming of age novel and Barker couldn’t have done it better. Inviting us to reflect on life in our latter years and the formative ones that shaped us. On loves, friendships, loss and those more elusive things that linger in our thoughts as time goes by. And here Barker’s prose prove an absolute treasure because we believe in the authenticity of his story.

With a coarse creative charm of its own, One Hot Summer is firmly rooted in credible characterization. “As you get older you want to be like your Dad. In my case, my Dad was an engineer and I had the mathematical ability of a pot plant,” says John Burton. And it’s lines like these that will have you laughing out loud at times, but it will also make you think as Barker’s adolescent narrative transcends its teen limitations. John is seventeen with one thing on his mind and Barker captures every crosscurrent of temptation and anxiety whilst investing such sincerity in his character that it’s impossible not to root for him.

A superb, bittersweet coming of age novel that lingers long beyond the final page One Hot Summer proves a must-read and is recommended without reservation!