1.03.2011

Review: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

 
Book: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Published: Knopf, 2010
Genre: YA
Pages:  260 pages
Where I got it: bought at Borders
Buy It: Amazon
 
Summary (from Goodreads): “I’ve left some clues for you.
If you want them, turn the page.
If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.”

So begins the latest whirlwind romance from the New York Times bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? Or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions?

Rachel Cohn and David Levithan have written a love story that will have readers perusing bookstore shelves, looking and longing for a love (and a red notebook) of their own.


My thoughts: This was the perfect book to read during the holidays because it takes place over Christmas and New Years. It's not strictly a Christmas book but Lily's love for the holidays helped put me in the holiday spirit. I was able to sync up my reading to the days of the events in the story, which was a fun way to read. I love the style in which Cohn and Levithan write their novels. If I hadn't read that Levithan was writing from Dash's perspective and Cohn from Lily's, I would have thought this was a book written by one author. The collaborative writing style is an interesting concept that I think could go either terribly wrong or incredibly right. In this case it's definitely the latter. I had a blast reading Dash & Lily's Book of Dares, and I may have developed a slight crush on Dash along the way (a boy who loves to read? I don't believe it!)

Lily got on my nerves sometimes, particularly when she referred to herself as Shrilly, but overall I thought both she and Dash were fun and engaging characters. I have never been to The Strand in NYC but I have heard that it's a book lover's heaven. I loved that Cohn and Levithan made it such an integral part of Dash & Lily's adventures. I didn't find this to be a completely believable story, but it was fun nonetheless. While reading, I felt like I really got to know the characters and it seemed like I was in on their game of trading the red moleskine notebook back and forth. Their notebook of dares was such a fun idea, I'm tempted to try something similar myself. It would be an awesome way to make a new bookish friend and such a great story to tell.

My rating: 4 stars

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