Middle school is hard enough without problems like these... Toshihiko Ota is mocked by his peers for his smooth, hairless body, but his life changes forever when he meets a young woman in swim club with the opposite problem: Ayako Goto, poised for swim-meet glory but too ashamed of her body hair to compete. After Ota happens on her trying unsuccessfully to shave in the locker room, she comes to him with an astonishing request...! Can they help each other find the confidence to embrace their own bodies? This sweet yet erotic early work from psychosexual auteur Shuzo Oshimi (Blood on the Tracks, Flowers of Evil) is not your average tale of puppy love. A quiet story of budding sexuality, self-exploration, trust, and friendship, Sweet Poolside is ultimately one of Oshimi's most focused and sincere works, as well as the basis for the live-action movie of the same name.

By Shuzo Oshimi.