Will I love Watery Ways?

With humor and grace, Valerie describes her trials and tribulations as she transitions from a divorce and corporate job in Johannesburg, to renting and eventually purchasing an old barge in the city of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. As she points out, “one of the first things you learn about living on a barge is that an awful lot of stuff is going to end up in the water.”

First, I adore Val Poore's writing. It has an efficient eloquence that leaves me green with envy. Secondly, Val is the kind of tenacious and gritty person I love to read about. It's a great combination.

When Val's plans to exchange her life in the corporate fast lane of Johannesburg for a quiet house in Holland go awry, she finds herself living alone on a historic Dutch barge in Rotterdam's Oude Haven. But this isn't a prettily painted luxury home on the water. It's a rotting empty hull, without even the most basic amenities. Many people would turn tail and… show more.