ReaderPaul

Good work, @BendtedWreath and @chris191070. I hope this story has several more chapters. I have some questions, but will save them at this time, except for one. What is Cane's full name?

This reminded me of when I was a small child and would have asthma attacks. Dad was always better at comforting me and soothing me than my mother. At that time Dad was working 66 hours a week, but he was always gentle and caring when I would have medical issues.

But, @mastershakeme -- I really like em dashes and how they set things apart! They can help point out something one wishes to emphasize.

Loved it! @Reader1810, maybe @chris191070 combined both of us. I react with him a lot on some of the Forum Games. Or maybe there is a Sheriff Paul in the next county! Enjoyed the story greatly, Chris and @BendtedWreath. Since this took place in the country, @Backwoods Boy or friendly Doctors named Sawzall and Paladin -- @drsawzall and @drpaladin -- might have shown up.

@Jason Rimbaud -- here is a possibility you are free to use if you wish. At the introduction to each chapter, mention that this takes place on a parallel or alternate Earth very similar to our own, but sometimes with minor differences. @Headstall and @Andrew Todd have good stories in this list. I need to branch out and read other authors who write Western stories. Thank you, @Myr, for these Deep Dives.

Darn it, @Jason Rimbaud, now I'm going to somehow find time to read a bunch of your stuff in the next few weeks, quicker than I had planned. This is good!

Why would we hate to see that?

Appeals for money from worthy causes have become so pervasive that many have developed what might be termed "giver's irritation" when ANY such appeal is made.

This chapter (and the whole story) was exciting, excellent, excelling, energetic, encouraging, and told with empathy, understanding, and much more. I was fascinated at the resulting resolution. Further, as is often the case, if was full of ideas and comments worth quoting. I have to admit, I was hoping Castor would give the ability for mind-touch to Rorna and Baradee, but it is okay that he did not. To absorb this chapter fully, I will have to read it again, but I am pleased with the entire story. Well done, Geron!

Geron has once again delivered a wonderful and adventurous and intriguing tale. The new friends they have made -- especially Rorna, Baradee, and Minerva -- and perhaps Elias the Younger -- are fascinating and discerning all at the same time, but in such a way that the story is greatly enhanced. This is well worth reading if you have any imagination at all. A few things in the story reminded me of Geron's excellent Doorways series here on GA, and of his excelling story, The Case of the Short, Short Prince. The writing by Geron Kees seems to keep getting better and better, and it was always good.

@quokka -- I will certainly miss your stories, and hope, at some time in the future, you will be able to resume writing, even if at a slower pace. I hope the best for you in all aspects of your life. Paul

What @Cane23 and @drpaladin said both have validity. But teens have often not read enough to learn that many of the endowments shown in porn are via men more endowed than average, and/or the lengths are artificially enhanced by camera angles and strategically planned close-ups. Further, some schools do not require mass showering as was the rule when I was in high school. When my son was in school they were building additional new intermediate and high schools due to overcrowding. There were 150 students in one of his PE classes, and nobody was encouraged to shower, due to lack of facilities. I think there are additional factors which could be discussed for a long time. But it still is a problem.

Unfortunately, I beg to differ. In some parts of the US Midwest, being gay or bi or trans still is a big deal, and much of the culture is not yet accepting or tolerant enough. It is improving a bit, but could use a quicker turnaround of attitude. But this is a really good story.

@Topher Lydon -- The series is good from the start, and the first story is titled "It's the Great Punkin', Charlie Boone!" To get to the listing of the Charlie Boone series, go to --- In the first story, Charlie, Kippy, Ricky, and Adrian are fourteen years old. there is no obvious magic, but there is much about human nature woven into a wonderful story, along with the difficulty of one of the characters "coming out of the [proverbial] closet." The first story also has the most actual and actually described direct sex in the series -- after that it is mostly implied but we still are well aware that it is going on. Over the course of the series, the boys age into their twenties, and meet many wonderful persons as a result of many sets of circumstances. The second story, "It's the Gayest Christmas Ever, Charlie Boone!" -- begins to introduce the magic element into the series, and the guys meet Max, Frit, and Pip. As the series continues, they guys meet many wonderful friends, some of whom become semi-regulars or regulars in the series. It will take time well spent to go through the series, but it is quite enjoyable. How the guys go from ordinary kids to extraordinary young men is an enjoyable journey. Enjoy, Topher, and thank you, @Geron Kees, for all the good reading.

Another thing it accomplished was helping guys realize there is a very wide range of "normal" in male genitalia. I never had nude swimming available, but I was raised in a very rural area where guys urinated almost anywhere that females could not see them. A guy who turned away to hide his genitals was considered weird if more than one male was urinating. I never heard any male tease another for a small male member, but sometimes heard complimentary remarks about a male with large genitalia or testicles. I think some of the things of excessive modesty we have now were caused by females exerting their influence and prudery. A few years back I went to a movie theater and in the men's room they had installed 36 inch privacy shields between each urinal. That seems like overdoing the modesty -- I am unaware of ANY male which would need 36 inches (3 feet or 0.9144 meter) to shield his penis from view.

I have seen some fruitcake which retains rigidness for a disturbingly long time.

I have read stories by both male and female writers. One of the best M/M romance stories I have read was by a female author on a website beginning with "N" and the author used the first name of Priscilla. But many stories depicting M/M romance are not up to the level of Priscilla's writing. On the other hand many males are not the best writers, in all fairness. Priscilla's story was reasonable in plot, progressed at a rate easily believed, used good grammar and punctuation, and also had touches of humor throughout. ( @Sherye Story Reader -- did you ever write under the name Priscilla something or other? If so, please send me a PM.) I agree with @Jason Rimbaud -- the story is more important than the gender of the author.

According to the GA word count, as of December 28, 2025, at 6:53 p.m. Central Standard Time, there are 1,220,162 Words in the Charlie Boone series.

Wow! Many talented authors in those listings.

How cool that you have added two more major characters to Charlie and friends, @Geron Kees. Frankie and Garaval will be great additions to the Boone universe. Please consider that Amy and Horace might be able to give additional insight into Garaval with their particular talents. Perhaps one day I will sit down and make a list of major characters who have so far appeared in the series. They would range from Charlie, Kip, Rick Travers, and Adrian, to Maximillian [Max] Pribilownakowskif, Frit, Pip, Nicholaas, Pacha'ka, Mike, Billy Matson, Will Hopkins, Illia, Murcha, Onglet, Uncle Bob Travers, Mayor Snorkum, Kiley and Kiri Snorkum, Bobby Felsen, Kontus 3Rowf, Ronja, Auggie, Keerby -- not to mention some of the more recent ones like Horace, Amy, Big Irv, Kiernan, Robin Hood, Ragal, Casper, Jeremiah, Jol, Browbeat, Lane Tallfield, and the recurring Mrs. Pribilownakowskif (Max's wife, normally referred to as Mrs. P), Sefton, and more. No telling how many more could be added that show up in more than one story. Really good story, Geron. Thanks again!

A pleasant Christmas day surprise, this CB short story. A fascinating new concept is introduced when Casper and Browbeat attempt to give Charlie, Kip, Rick, and Adrian a surprise Christmas gift. The result is something not previously seen in the series. and I look forward in future stories how this works into the series. Well worth reading.

LOL, @drpaladin and @Geron Kees. I love reminding of characters, whether it be Carl Lawson (Kip's dad), or Seeri Deeping's as-yet-not-named younger sister (from The Case of the Short, Short Prince), or Kiernan's as yet unnamed sister). And we have not yet learned more about Sandy Klaus, from the first Charlie Boone Christmas story, but who works for Nicholaas at Northern Industries.

The way I found it was a slower way than @Myr found it. I went to the Stories Tab, and clicked. Then I entered Circumnavigation in the Stories Search Bar where it says "Stories" not the search bar near the top right of the page. When the home page for Circumnavigation came up, I looked where Myr highlighted. The question reminds me of when I mentioned in a comment on a story by @Geron Kees that I noticed he had loaded the next chapter of the story I was reading for posting at the appropriate time and was looking forward to reading the chapter when it posted. I told him that I had clicked on the "STATS" icon on the story landing page and it showed what chapter had been loaded, but not the content of the chapters. Since the chapters had been loaded, then the author can post manually if enough time has passed, or an Admin or Site Moderator can post it for the author if the author is unable to post. Geron was wondering how I knew some chapters were already loaded, since I am not not an Admin or Site Moderator or the author. I read a lot, and try to keep up with some of the GA site rules, in case I decide to try writing a story at some future time.

@Jason Rimbaud The period shown was for only one year. The all time views on Circumnavigation were 2,432,488 Views since it started posting in 2010 and finished posting in 2013.

Well done indeed, @BendtedWreath and @chris191070. I would like to give this story six stars, but the system will only let me assign five stars. This story is put together well and easily enjoyed. I recommend it.