John E. Keegan

It's 1959, there are no cell phones or laptops, Eisenhower is President and the country is at peace. Or is it? Three seemingly aimless teenagers, including the spirited daughter of the town's stock car hero, confront the violence happening behind closed doors. A summer vacation from high school that ends in two ugly deaths and a climactic trial. 

 

 

"A strong sense of place, solid characterization, and an excellent plot all work together to create this novel's considerable power. Packing the punch of Stephen King's novella, The Body [Stand by Me, the film], a classic of small-town life disrupted by violent death, this novel is, in its turn, highly recommended."

-Library Journal

 

"Incest, rape and domestic violence lurk in the shadows of Clearwater, the idyllic little Pacific Northwest town that provides the setting for this novel,"

-Publisher's Weekly 

 

"Keegan's powerful Clearwater Summer conjures recollections of another little book, To Kill A Mockingbird."

-The Milwaukee Journal

 

 

"Evocative of the '50s and a strong sense of place, Clearwater Summer is made hot by a violent death and a surprise ending."

-The Sunday Oregonian

 

"Keegan charms us with the innocence and harmony of a small-town 50's life, while gradually revealing its dark underbelly. The characters in Clearwater Summer grapple with a problem that people today still prefer would remain hidden. I couldn't help but cry."

-Norm Maleng, King County Prosecuting Attorney (sadly, deceased)

 

"Clearwater Summer is a tender tale of virtue and loss. Keegan taps, shakes and finally shatters any false notions of the way it used to be."

-Rebecca Brown, Author of The Children's Crusade