Any book that mentions Judy

is worth it's weight in gold! Dishes mentions her twice! I didn't like One Good Punch so I wasn't sure if I would try another Rich Wallace, but after enjoying I Kissed a Zombie after hating How to Get Suspended I reminded myself that it is good to give authors a second try. Okay the big reason was that I didn't have any audio books to listen to and it was too late to go to the library and so I downloaded it to my itouch. And I like the cover!
Dishes is set in Ogunquit, Maine, mostly on the beach and a bar called Dishes, hence the book title. Danny is a twenty year old straight guy who is living with the father he never knew very well for the summer and maybe longer. He and his dad work at Dishes, which is a gay establishment.
The book is a coming of age story dealing very lightly with father-son relationships and boy-girl relationships. It mostly focuses on Danny's feelings about having a close gay, male friend. I just wish that Wallace wrote with a little more depth because this could have been an awesome book, but as it stands, it is a bit light.
As I was listening to it I was reminded of those Bruce Springsteen songs that do nothing but describe what Bruce is doing. You know the ones where Bruce sings:
Well I woke up in the morning and I brushed by teeth.
I walked over to my baby who was still asleep.
I put on my pants and then my socks and shoes.
I got the milk out of the refrigerator.
This is my hometown.
All the businesses are closing down.
So that night I make some fish sticks in the microwave.
I spilled some ketchup on my shirt and I felt grave.
I had a glass of Coke and then went to the store.
This is my hometown.
All the businesses are closing down.
That's kind of what Wallace does with Dishes. Still, it is a fast, short book and it mentions Judy, of course she is tied in with the whole gay community, being that she is a gay icon for men.
I can see why gay men love Judy. I can see why the world loves Judy. She spoke and sang for all of us. She still does.
Anyway...Dishes could have been so much more...but I can't trash it. Judy saves it for sure.