Review: Dressing Up by Todd Young
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 23, 2012
In Dressing Up, Todd Young tells the story of Skipper, a college athlete who must come to terms with his sexuality in an environment where being gay is not accepted. Beyond that, Skipper suffers the pain of unrequited love, made worse by the fact that the boy, who insists he's not gay, constantly flaunts his goods in front of Skipper.Skipper is a "dumb jock," attending college on a football scholarship. He works hard to keep afloat in his classes, but it takes tremendous effort. Not only does he lack book smarts, but he doesn't have much in the way of street smarts either. He's been made fun of all his life for being stupid, and it's a sore spot with him.The guys in the dorm all talk about him behind his back. They suspect he's gay, and they get their kicks by playing cruel pranks on him. Skip denies being gay in order to fend off further harassment, but it's a secret that is harder and harder to keep as he becomes closer to the object of his affection.It's not only the guys in his dorm that treat him badly. He is taken advantage of by all sorts of people in his life. Because he's so gullible, he doesn't even realize he puts himself in risky situations until it's too late. Once he realizes people are making fun of him or trying to hurt him, he gets angry with himself for being so stupid. It's agonizing.Todd Young does a remarkable job of pulling the reader into Skip's head. I felt Skip's pain and anguish right along with him. I was worried and frustrated and confused and angry and sad and sorry with him too.Somehow Todd Young manages to deliver these emotionally intense scenes with an edge of humor. Poor Skip keeps finding himself in positions where his clothes are either too tight or too small. The man is just fated to have his junk on display! The hospital scene, where he discovers he's wearing a catheter, and then the too-small hospital gown was just brilliant.Skip spends a lot of time thinking about sex, especially since his roommate likes to walk around naked after his evening shower, and he also sleeps in the nude, with the covers never quite covering him. Poor Skip! He's a walking bundle of sexual frustration. He spends a lot of time in the shower and under his covers taking care of business. The sex in this book is not sugar-coated. It's realistic and gritty. And sexy! (The piano scene was soooo hot!)I love Hurt/Comfort, and this story was "hurt" at its best: a long, slow burn that intensifies until you feel like your heart will just break for this beautiful boy. At one point I feared there wouldn't be a happy ending for Skip, but thankfully he did find his comfort in the end. The ending isn't what I would call "sweet" but it was real and satisfying and yes, happy.As he did in Jumbo, Todd Young manages to deliver a very emotional character without being sappy or overly sentimental. His boys are such boys.I highly recommend this story, especially to those who are looking for an unconventional romance with realistic characters and edgy storytelling.