Beautiful, fun, sexy, wonderous. This book is an incredible adventure, and, rare for a longer work, deserves every page it’s printed on plus a rereading in the not-too-distant future.
This is one of the few coming-of-age novels where I have rushed along, enraptured with the protagonist, to reach some milestone and be shocked when I look back at how far our dear hero has come, transformed, and grown. And this, time and time again. She sheds so many skins, becomes so many people, yet remains Nan throughout. Brilliant.
I started reading for the lesbian sex, not expecting too much in the way of literary worth. But Waters really blew me away with her beautifully vivid, ever-growing characters, deftly handled plots, the incredibly satisfying and earned ending, and…well, yes…the lesbian sex!