so, does it matter if Kory is a otter and Samaki is a fox? Does it matter if this is an anthropomorphic book where all the characters are of different animal species? Someone said to me that people freak out when they are put in front of a book about love between 'animals'. Waterways is a pretty intense, very romantic and utterly beautiful novel. All along he will have Samaki and along the path he will loose some people and he will find new friends. It's a three part story: Aquifers where Kory discovers what he feels, Streams where he has to take some decisions, and Oceans where he strengthens that decisions and starts his adult life. Waterways is the coming age journey of Kory. And more he opens himself, more people he finds who accept him. Not image of hell in front of him, not eternal damnation. But when he cofesses his sin to Father Joe, he is surprised to not find a condemned glare in the priest eyes, but instead Father Joe tells him to see inside himself and to ask help if he needs. But what he felt is wrong, Kory is from a strictly catholic family and he knows that God will not love him if he is gay. but if he is not gay why he has these dreams on Samaki? dreams that he has never had of his former girlfriend? And maybe he is so happy with Samaki cause he feels for him. How can he tells to Samaki that he is not gay? cause he is not gay. Samaki was hitting on him, Samaki is gay. And when he recalls all the time spent together he finally understands. Kory is happy to find a new friend but still, when they part, he has the feeling to have missed something, to have not answered some untold questions by Samaki. Samaki, same age like him, but from the poor side of the city, is a very nice guy, someone he could talk to. So Kory decides to spend sometime in the municipal pool, and not in the usual private pool where all his friends gather and where he has to suffer the sympathetic smiles. Probably he would finish dumping her, but still it hurts that she takes the decision from him.

Worst, lately he prefers to spend his spare time at home, on line or reading, rather than with her.

But Kory is not happy, he was dumped by his girlfriend cause he wrote a beautiful poem for school paper and he didn't dedicate it to her. Middle-class family, private school, every gadgets a guy his age could want. And when I finish the book, I wish to start it again to convince me that, yes, I just read a very very good book and that yes, I found another author that will gift me many beautiful stories in the future. How I like when I find a book, a real long and complex book, which takes me tied up from the first page to the last with the eagerness to read faster to know what happens and the hope to slow down to make it lasts a bit more.

Waterways by Kyell Gold