Matthew's Story

ishbelmairi

Unbelievable quality

Reviewed it on June 26, 2025

The continuing travel through the search for knowledge with heart is absolutely fascinating. From a young age he was absolutely focused on his journey and never lost sight of his goal. I stayed up, reading, until 4am to finish it. The other books are equally enjoyable touching something inside me which I thought long gone. I realize these books were written to get the bookworm out of your mind but please, please continue as you have the ability to reach deep within your readers that very few authors have.

seamusmboy

loved it

Reviewed it on May 29, 2025

very emotional

Great story.

Reviewed it on May 28, 2025

You should read it. It’s well worth the time.

ken.johnson.483

Matthews Story

Reviewed it on May 21, 2025

Ending was rushed. Excellent story till the end. Loved the improved ending. Wonderful work

tkistner

Heart Warming

Reviewed it on May 18, 2025

Learning about a dream. Fàcing extreme dificulties, but the dream never dies. Finding suportive people along the way to finally achieve it.

mogrith

A story of personal growth and staying true to your dream

Reviewed it on May 16, 2025

I enjoyed the journey, from part time cook at local mom amp; pop places to the final destination. UPDATED Extended ending chapters match the rest of the story's pacing and works to a much better ending --- His time at ICE seemed very real to me. But I'm not familiar with a culinary school.

awakelate1966

Oh Pete…..

Reviewed it on May 15, 2025

Great story that truly shows what working the back of the house really is like. I came about in the old style Chef underling relationship. Those relationships brought about intense meetings with Beer, Jack, Jose and others of their type. It wasn’t until I was in my forties that the new improved Chefs came about. The one thing I did a lot of and became good at was opening a restaurant from scratch. That is what the “Oh Pete” was about. The Magic of watching a restaurant come together and open. The weeding through purveyors, building a wine cellar, the relationships with the contractors . Fights between the Health Department and Fire Marshal. Those were fun to watch. I thought you ended it to abruptly. Again it was a wonderful story with just to quick an ending. But that’s my opinion and Lord knows I have been wrong before. Brad Sone bradleysone@gmail.com

tryan

Reading is imagination.

Reviewed it on May 14, 2025

Before I purchased this book I read the reviews. Most liked it but were disappointed by the ending. I was not imagining the future for his new restaurant and relationship.

lanmandragon

Food relationships / Food and relationships

Reviewed it on May 14, 2025

The author describes relationships between people and their working together in a manner which transcends the scene described and uncovers deep truths about how people interact in good professional environments. Impressive English and almost overwhelming technical research round off a wonderful offering which I cannot praise highly enough.

CZ

Matthew's Story

Reviewed it on May 13, 2025

I found it to be different and interesting! I loved what you wrote! Will be looking forward to future stories!

You should read this book!

Reviewed it on May 12, 2025

It's less than 24 hours since I purchased "Matthew's Story." I could not put it down and thoroughly enjoyed the read.

dougt3612

Not a how to, but a how to be:

Reviewed it on May 12, 2025

It is a well written example of how a young boy overcomes adversity to become a whole and complete person and finds the "magic".

Curmudgeon at Large

Fantastic book!

Reviewed it on May 12, 2025

*UPDATED REVIEW* After the author revised the ending, I’ve added another star. The new ending really concludes the journey in a very satisfying manner, leaving us to imagine a happily ever after. I highly recommend anything from Peter K. Young! ————————————— I really enjoyed this book, even with the rushed ending. The main character is easily relatable, the storytelling is marvelous. However, it seems like the last chapter was just tacked on to give it an ending. I could easily see that last chapter being expanded to four or five or even six chapters as we see the challenges that our main character faces in finally fulfilling his dream. Still, worth every minute spent reading it and leaves you wanting more. I guess you can’t ask for anything more.

A Great Read and the story flows

Reviewed it on May 12, 2025

The Author can get into your soul. I give this book 10 out of 10. If you are reading this, I do urge you to buy this book to encourage the author to write many more.

wathumb1

Very good, but the end...

Reviewed it on May 12, 2025

Liked it alot, just the end feels rushed. Spending so many pages detailing out the journey it just feels wrong to finish it like that.

Bill

Exceptional work from a newer author.

Reviewed it on May 11, 2025

The book takes you through the food industry from the chef's perspective. It starts with a young man helping in a kitchen to professional training, eventually fixing failing restraints and finally his own place. Lots of cooking tips and large kitchen management. Very enjoyable.

d_oh_7

Another

Reviewed it on May 11, 2025

Well written story by Pete.

tbokhari1

Fixed my issues

Reviewed it on May 11, 2025

The rewrite fixed my objections.Thus its now worth 5 Stars to me.Thank you.

martin.theo974

Very nice story

Reviewed it on May 11, 2025

Very nice story

Awesome start to finish NOW!

Reviewed it on May 11, 2025

Thank you, thank you, Peter, for the re-write!! You have now concluded the story in the manner in which it began. Truly bringing a close to the arc of Matthew's story. I recommend this work to everyone.

tonykidd64

Technically, very well written.

Reviewed it on May 15, 2025

My fault is with the story itself. Downtrodden kid. Very successful in his chosen field. But there's really no story there. No major hurdles. no love story. Success through hard work, that's fine. But it's sort of a nothing burger. but with a really fine demi glace.

It's a very good read.

Reviewed it on May 13, 2025

How the central character's absorbed food and cooking skills, could have become boring, but somehow it didn't. I thoroughly enjoyed his journey, possibly the author could have taken it for few further miles, but I suppose it had reached a reasonable conclusion. Unless, of course he intends a Part 2, I can hope!

Another great story..

Reviewed it on May 12, 2025

Enjoyed this story a lot but the ending seemed a little lacking. I would have liked to see more story leading up to the ending. But overall another great story. Get back to the keeper!

xofdallas

This cries out for a Book 2

Reviewed it on May 12, 2025

This was a very enjoyable novel, but does merit two constructive critiques. First, the ending was pretty abrupt and jarring. Without creating any spoilers, There's a lot that had to go on between the meat of the last chapter, and its last few paragraphs - things that I am curious about, even now. Perhaps that's deliberate - a way to set the stage for a continuation book. I don't know. Second, I would have imagined his journey would have included a visit to Chicago to revisit old haunts and to reconnect with those who nurtured him. Most times, I like to return to places, as long as they do not have bad memories for me. I'm not aware of any bad memories Chicago had for Matthew. Perhaps some of his mentors have passed and we don't know it. Perhaps Matthew realizes there's no truly going back (although that took me decades to truly learn). Or perhaps it was deliberate - a desire to explore completely new paths. Either way, this apparent anomaly likely could be taken care of with as little as one paragraph. On the whole, though, it was a thoroughly enjoyable read!