The Cold Pools

By: Chris Ward

Narrated by: Noah Lee Margetts

Meet me at the end of the world....

As civilization comes to an end, Lewis and Karen take their last vacation to the only cold place left on Earth, the remote resort town of Cold Pools. There, they will say goodbye....

"The Cold Pools", a short story, is taken from the author's collection Ms. Ito's Bird & Other Stories.

Chris Ward is the author of more than 80 short stories (33 of them published) and the novel The Tube Riders.

©2012 Chris Ward (P)2015 Chris Ward

Short but excellent

This short story is a sad but beautiful tale of loss, both personal and environmental. It draws you in and pulls at your heartstrings from the very beginning. The narrator infuses a multitude of emotions into this short poignant story with great tempo shifts, intonation and voice inflection. It is a well written piece that hints at possible global warming consequences in the future and makes your heart ache for the human ramifications.

The Cold Pools

Oftentimes, a short story seems just that....short. In this case, the author does a great job in building the mood of the story and developing the characters in a few words.

The world has warmed up and there is only one glacier left. Karen is dying and her last wish is to see the one remaining glacier. She and her husband, Lewis, travel there and learn the truth about the Cold Pools.

The story was poignant, well-written, and thought-provoking. Well done for a short story.

The narrator was perfect and his performance added a lot to this story. I was given the chance to listen to the audiobook version by the author/publisher and chose to review it.

It's the end

It may seem like a crazy thing to say, but short stories are tough/complex things. They are often just a snapshot of a larger picture, often leaving the reader with many questions. And I have to imagine for the writers it's difficult to limit what they tell their readers and what to leave up to their imaginations. The Cold Pools is just such a snapshot. One man's experiences and musing over mortality: of his wife, himself, the planet. Mr. Ward delivers a touching personal tale, but also manages without going into much detail to hint at the greater world and a disaster that has befallen it. As for the narrator Noah Margetts. I'd never heard his work before but loved his performance.

Poignant Short Story

A sad, moving, heartrending tale told with brevity and creativity. I would caution readers though that the subject matter is dark and depressing. Noah Lee Margetts does a great job with the narration as his tone reflects the seriousness of the subject matter. I was given a free copy of the audiobook and I have voluntarily left this review.