Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

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"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.

 

When Dash finds Lily’s red notebook at The Strand he is intrigued and thinks he may have finally found the perfect diversion that will entertain him during Christmas – “the most detestable time of the year.”  When Lily learns that someone has taken on the challenge set forth in her notebook she is excited to have some fun during what she considers the most wonderful time of the year.  Through the use of a notebook that is hidden through out New York City, two very opposite people learn of only the reasons why maybe a relationship between the two them can work.   

Let’s just get right to it.  I adored this book.  I don’t know if it was because of the mood I was in when I picked it up  - I was looking for a fun romance.  Or if it is because of the mood it put me in – it made me absolutely giddy for Christmas and New Years.   

Lily is a young and innocent girl that is just now learning about the adult world she has up until now avoided.  She is adorable, sweet and creative with an unusually fun wardrobe that left me reeling with envy.  In short, Lily Rocks.  Between her happy and still innocent outlook on life and her absolute love of Christmas – the girl organized a caroling society for goodness sake – It’s hard not to love her. 

Dash is a young and intelligent snob with a dry wit and eclectic vocabulary that would put any adult hipster to shame. Seriously.  The only thing this kid is missing is a mustache and a cigarette.  Where Lily provides endless happiness and light, Dash gives us a healthy but fun dose of angst and humor.  So many of his scenes had me laughing out loud that I was pretty sure that my husband was going to banish me from the bedroom if I kept waking him up.    

The two of them interacting through the pages of a notebook is one of the most amusing and happiest things I have read in a long time.  Cohn and Levithan somehow made chemistry between two people that never meet absolutely reverberate off the page.

If you are looking for a story that is guaranteed to get you into the holiday spirit, Dash and Lily is it.  Pick it up this weekend and read it before Christmas and New Years.  Who knows?  Maybe you will end up hiding a red notebook of your own.

 

Nat