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Dash & Lily #1
Dash & Lily's Book of Dares
“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 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.
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 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.
260 pages, Hardcover
First published October 26, 2010
About the author
Rachel Cohn
31 books2,260 followersRachel grew up in the D.C. area and graduated from Barnard College with a B.A. in Political Science. She has written many YA novels, including three that she cowrote with her friend and colleague David Levithan. She lives and writes (when she's not reading other people's books, organizing her music library or looking for the best cappuccino) in New York City.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 11,383 reviews
December 5, 2016
This was the perfect book to kick off my count down to christmas!
Full video review here: https://youtu.be/oEUUyRwuAQg
Full video review here: https://youtu.be/oEUUyRwuAQg
December 17, 2018
This was such a fun and cute Christmas read! I didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I did but it was a very welcome surprise!
February 13, 2018
A solid 3 stars. I was completely enthralled in the beginning but as the pace of the story shifted, I severely lost interest. The setting and the characters and the plot complimented each other so well. I do wish the mystery of the notebook was preserved for longer during the story - I feel that is truly what this book had going for it, and it was completely lost when Dash and Lily had met. It is definitely a fun Christmas read, very "John Green-esque" and I did enjoy my time reading it. After hearing so many serious fans of this book be disappointed by the sequel, I don't think I'm interested enough to continue.
December 14, 2012
I can't even finish this. The pretension nauseates me. When page upon page is spent quoting books in an effort to... I don't know. Reinforce that the character is smart? It's like a brick to the head.
I don't need you to prove to me how smart your character is. How edgy and hipster he is. How quirky and earnest she is. Just show me in context with an interesting storyline (which it has), and strong characters (which it could have had.)
I don't need you to prove to me how smart your character is. How edgy and hipster he is. How quirky and earnest she is. Just show me in context with an interesting storyline (which it has), and strong characters (which it could have had.)
December 23, 2021
If I could choose one word and one word only to describe this book, it would be: ✨pretentious✨
December 17, 2016
Vamos a ignorar el hecho de que he tardado en leer este libro unos diez días (quién me ha visto y quién me ve), porque lo he disfrutado y he tenido la sensación de haberlo leído en mucho menos tiempo.
Cuaderno para dos es, aparte de una horrible traducción, un título misterioso que nos sugiere algo ñoño. Pero luego no lo es, ya os lo aseguro. Tanto el personaje de Lily como el de Dash son increíbles, con voces diferentes y muy bien definidos. Y ninguno de los dos es sencillo, simple o demasiado fácil de entender. Son complejos, con carácter y bien desarrollados.
Eso es lo que hace que Cuaderno para dos no sea una novela ñoña romanticona. Es una historia sobre dos amantes de los libros que deciden intercambiar experiencias y abrir su corazón sin conocerse de nada. Justo cuando la novela parece cansar con los retos del cuaderno, las cosas cambian y ambos personajes maduran, así como la historia. Me gustan esos cambios en las novelas, donde se abandona esa 'base' para convertir la historia en algo mejor.
En general me ha gustado mucho. Me he reído y pasado un rato entretenido con algunos de los retos, con Boomer y la familia de Lily, además de con alguna escena del final (¡la ladrona de bebés, ALERTA ROJA!). Como siempre, salgo contento de leer una novela de Levithan, que siempre dejan con buen sabor de boca. Respecto a Rachel Cohn poco puedo decir, pues al no haber leído nada suyo no puedo identificar sus elementos.
Recomiendo mucho que leáis Cuaderno para dos. Vais a pasar un rato inolvidable conociendo a unos personajes más que interesantes. Ahora permitidme que lea la segunda parte corriendo <3
Cuaderno para dos es, aparte de una horrible traducción, un título misterioso que nos sugiere algo ñoño. Pero luego no lo es, ya os lo aseguro. Tanto el personaje de Lily como el de Dash son increíbles, con voces diferentes y muy bien definidos. Y ninguno de los dos es sencillo, simple o demasiado fácil de entender. Son complejos, con carácter y bien desarrollados.
Eso es lo que hace que Cuaderno para dos no sea una novela ñoña romanticona. Es una historia sobre dos amantes de los libros que deciden intercambiar experiencias y abrir su corazón sin conocerse de nada. Justo cuando la novela parece cansar con los retos del cuaderno, las cosas cambian y ambos personajes maduran, así como la historia. Me gustan esos cambios en las novelas, donde se abandona esa 'base' para convertir la historia en algo mejor.
En general me ha gustado mucho. Me he reído y pasado un rato entretenido con algunos de los retos, con Boomer y la familia de Lily, además de con alguna escena del final (¡la ladrona de bebés, ALERTA ROJA!). Como siempre, salgo contento de leer una novela de Levithan, que siempre dejan con buen sabor de boca. Respecto a Rachel Cohn poco puedo decir, pues al no haber leído nada suyo no puedo identificar sus elementos.
Recomiendo mucho que leáis Cuaderno para dos. Vais a pasar un rato inolvidable conociendo a unos personajes más que interesantes. Ahora permitidme que lea la segunda parte corriendo <3
September 21, 2016
Okay at first I didn't think I was going to like this book like I did Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist but after I kept reading it <--- I was wrong!
I laughed so hard at certain parts that I almost peed myself! I really needed that today/tonight! No peeing myself but a great laugh.
Lily's parents leave her and her brother for the Christmas holidays, they go to Fiji. Their grandpa went off to Florida to see his girlfriend and Lily's brother is only interested in spending time with his boyfriend.
So, Lily's brother Langston gives her the idea about the notebook. She fills this red notebook full of stuff and puts it in the bookstore in between some shelves hoping maybe someone would find it. And guess what? They did, Dash found the notebook and did his part of the dares, nothing too extreme and then he was supposed to leave the notebook in a place or with a person that Lily chose.
This went on through-out the story with them both giving each other things to do and then leave the notebook in weird places or with people they recruited. I thought it was so charming and cute. Some of the stuff was so hilarious and weird and I want to do it! :-)
I love that these two lonely people happen to find each other at Christmas to do all of this craziness. It was sooooo much fun.
At some point they do want to meet each other but some things go wrong and Dash has to run around and try to find Lily. She ran away and forgot to leave the notebook! So he has to go back to people that were involved and try to find her. He does eventually find her but it wasn't the greatest of times to find her so they part ways.
Then Lily sets out to find Dash, oh and Dash has this hilarious friend named Boomer that actually became friends with Lily before Dash did. There are other characters that are really cool in the book too and it seems some of them are on the couples side.
But oh the horror when Lily and Dash meet up again in person. Lily had just posted a sign where Dash lived and was on her way walking one of her dogs from her pet sitting and he was a bull mastiff. Lord have mercy, this is where I started . . . um . . . having pee moments and they kept going for quite some time. I thought I was going to crack a rib I was laughing so hard.
I need not have posted the sign, however.
Because five minutes after I posted it, Boris started loudly barking at a teenage boy who approached me as I scooped up the biggest piece of dog dung I'd ever seen.
"Lily?"
I looked up from my plastic bag filled with giant poo.
Of course.
It was Dash.
Who else would find me at this moment? First he found me drunk, now he found me cleaning up poo from a barking pony who was about to go into attack mode.
That's not even half of it, there's the ice skating with the dog (not by choice), flying giant poo, child killers (not really) and the save the flying baby tackle. Oh and the little bit of time in jail.
I freaking loved it. I love these authors. I want more of their books. Anything that makes me happy and almost, um, pee my pants - I want more of in my life.
Thank you and goodnight! ♥
MY BLOG: Melissa Martin's Reading List
I laughed so hard at certain parts that I almost peed myself! I really needed that today/tonight! No peeing myself but a great laugh.
Lily's parents leave her and her brother for the Christmas holidays, they go to Fiji. Their grandpa went off to Florida to see his girlfriend and Lily's brother is only interested in spending time with his boyfriend.
So, Lily's brother Langston gives her the idea about the notebook. She fills this red notebook full of stuff and puts it in the bookstore in between some shelves hoping maybe someone would find it. And guess what? They did, Dash found the notebook and did his part of the dares, nothing too extreme and then he was supposed to leave the notebook in a place or with a person that Lily chose.
This went on through-out the story with them both giving each other things to do and then leave the notebook in weird places or with people they recruited. I thought it was so charming and cute. Some of the stuff was so hilarious and weird and I want to do it! :-)
I love that these two lonely people happen to find each other at Christmas to do all of this craziness. It was sooooo much fun.
At some point they do want to meet each other but some things go wrong and Dash has to run around and try to find Lily. She ran away and forgot to leave the notebook! So he has to go back to people that were involved and try to find her. He does eventually find her but it wasn't the greatest of times to find her so they part ways.
Then Lily sets out to find Dash, oh and Dash has this hilarious friend named Boomer that actually became friends with Lily before Dash did. There are other characters that are really cool in the book too and it seems some of them are on the couples side.
But oh the horror when Lily and Dash meet up again in person. Lily had just posted a sign where Dash lived and was on her way walking one of her dogs from her pet sitting and he was a bull mastiff. Lord have mercy, this is where I started . . . um . . . having pee moments and they kept going for quite some time. I thought I was going to crack a rib I was laughing so hard.
I need not have posted the sign, however.
Because five minutes after I posted it, Boris started loudly barking at a teenage boy who approached me as I scooped up the biggest piece of dog dung I'd ever seen.
"Lily?"
I looked up from my plastic bag filled with giant poo.
Of course.
It was Dash.
Who else would find me at this moment? First he found me drunk, now he found me cleaning up poo from a barking pony who was about to go into attack mode.
That's not even half of it, there's the ice skating with the dog (not by choice), flying giant poo, child killers (not really) and the save the flying baby tackle. Oh and the little bit of time in jail.
I freaking loved it. I love these authors. I want more of their books. Anything that makes me happy and almost, um, pee my pants - I want more of in my life.
Thank you and goodnight! ♥
MY BLOG: Melissa Martin's Reading List
November 12, 2016
I really liked this!! I loved the characters and reading from their perspectives and how different they were. The premise and the plot and a lot of the quotes from this book were SO GREAT.
My main hang up was that the two main characters used words and phrases that even I didn't know or wouldn't use and I am TWENTY FIVE. Obviously, teenagers are awesome and can speak however the heck they want, but sometimes when YA books portray teenagers as knowing everything and speaking really audaciously, it irks me. It didn't bother me enough to dislike this book, but there were a few times it was just a little too much.
BUT OVERALL GREAT IF YOU LIKE CONTEMP YOU WILL PROBABLY LIKE THIS.
My main hang up was that the two main characters used words and phrases that even I didn't know or wouldn't use and I am TWENTY FIVE. Obviously, teenagers are awesome and can speak however the heck they want, but sometimes when YA books portray teenagers as knowing everything and speaking really audaciously, it irks me. It didn't bother me enough to dislike this book, but there were a few times it was just a little too much.
BUT OVERALL GREAT IF YOU LIKE CONTEMP YOU WILL PROBABLY LIKE THIS.
December 13, 2017
Before you start throwing things at me, remember the Christmas spirit.
I know everybody loves this book and thinks Lily & Dash are #Goals! but Nah!
This book was so boring I had to force myself to finish it. I expected this to be cute and sweet little holiday romance but I just did not enjoy this book. Lily and Dash have ZERO chemistry and I just kind of skimmed the last 20 pages. Lily was not an enjoyable character for me. She behaved like a 10 year old but got mad when people treated her like a 10 year old.
I'm obviously in the minority so I'm not going to give a recommendation. Not every book is meant for every reader.
Happy Holidays Everybody!
I know everybody loves this book and thinks Lily & Dash are #Goals! but Nah!
This book was so boring I had to force myself to finish it. I expected this to be cute and sweet little holiday romance but I just did not enjoy this book. Lily and Dash have ZERO chemistry and I just kind of skimmed the last 20 pages. Lily was not an enjoyable character for me. She behaved like a 10 year old but got mad when people treated her like a 10 year old.
I'm obviously in the minority so I'm not going to give a recommendation. Not every book is meant for every reader.
Happy Holidays Everybody!
December 13, 2014
This was such a cute book and I'm happy that I read it just in time for Christmas! I couldn't give it a 5/5 (even though I loved the plot) because I never really connected to the characters and they annoyed me at times. However, definitely read this if you haven't, especially during December!
December 3, 2017
“The important people in our lives leave imprints. They may stay or go in the physical realm, but they are always there in your heart, because they helped form your heart. There’s no getting over that.”
This book was worth reading for this scene alone. I’ve been missing my best friend a lot, especially with the holidays coming up. Reading something like this was what I needed to be reminded of.
This book was worth reading for this scene alone. I’ve been missing my best friend a lot, especially with the holidays coming up. Reading something like this was what I needed to be reminded of.
November 2, 2021
weirdly, this one was on my school reading list in middle school. oh, public school districts and your strange curriculum.
part of a series i'm doing in which i review books i read a long time ago and spotlight my glowing education
part of a series i'm doing in which i review books i read a long time ago and spotlight my glowing education
November 28, 2010
We had our first real snow this weekend and the advent season is approaching, so I decided to pick up Dash & Lily's Book of Dares to get in the mood for Christmas – at least a little bit. Actually, I wanted to save it for later in December, but my curiosity was simply too great.
It was a really sweet, but not too overly kitschy read featuring two likeable main characters. The spirit of the festive season came across in a great way and I enjoyed the dares passing between Lily and Dash with the help of a red notebook. Their story is probably not too realistic and would never happen in real life, but it was great to get lost in their almost fairytale-like romance for a few hours. If you are looking for a light and sweet read (that still has a little special touch) to get in the mood for Christmas and snow, I would recommend you give this book a try. It will not change your life or make a lasting expression with its message, but it's a lot of fun.
The only thing that annoyed me: Dash and Lily come across as a little too sophisticated for my taste. The way they talk seems sometimes almost unrealistic for two teenagers. Also, they both love to read, and of course their love for books covers only the classics. In my opinion, you don't have to be a huge fan of the classics – and only the classics – to be allowed to call yourself a booklover.
That being said, I nevertheless enjoyed Dash and Lily's Book of Dares, although I still like the other novel I read by Cohn and Leviathian, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist, a lot more.
It was a really sweet, but not too overly kitschy read featuring two likeable main characters. The spirit of the festive season came across in a great way and I enjoyed the dares passing between Lily and Dash with the help of a red notebook. Their story is probably not too realistic and would never happen in real life, but it was great to get lost in their almost fairytale-like romance for a few hours. If you are looking for a light and sweet read (that still has a little special touch) to get in the mood for Christmas and snow, I would recommend you give this book a try. It will not change your life or make a lasting expression with its message, but it's a lot of fun.
The only thing that annoyed me: Dash and Lily come across as a little too sophisticated for my taste. The way they talk seems sometimes almost unrealistic for two teenagers. Also, they both love to read, and of course their love for books covers only the classics. In my opinion, you don't have to be a huge fan of the classics – and only the classics – to be allowed to call yourself a booklover.
That being said, I nevertheless enjoyed Dash and Lily's Book of Dares, although I still like the other novel I read by Cohn and Leviathian, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist, a lot more.
December 20, 2016
- Dash – December 21st Imagine this: You’re in your favorite bookstore, scanning the shelves. You get to the section where a favorite author’s books reside, and there, nestled in comfortably between the incredibly familiar spines, sits a red notebook. What do you do? The choice, I think, is obvious: You take down the red notebook and open it.
When Dash opens the cover he finds a note on the first page.
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.
There are more instructions leading him to other books with other instructions.
He follows all the leads, makes his notes, and waits.
The red notebook becomes their only means of communication, and over a relatively short period of time they begin to share a little bit of themselves with the other. Christmas memories. Christmas “Wish List” items. His – an Unabridged Oxford English Dictionary, all 20 volumes.
Rachel Cohn and David Leviathan have written a relatively short, sweet, and fun novel about young love looked at from both sides using alternating chapters – his and hers – Dash’s and Lily’s views. Romance-Light for the YA crowd, maybe especially for those who consider themselves “bookish”.
December 27, 2011
I highly recommend Dash & Lily's Book of Dares.
DELIGHTFUL.
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is the perfect Christmas read. It took me around New York in the busiest time of the year with Dash’s abhorrence versus Lily’s ecstasy for the holidays. It kinda remind me of the movie Serendipity: same Christmas-in-New-York setting with the same non-meetings but with the longing of meeting the one another.
Dash and Lily are the total opposites. Dash never recovered from his parents’ nasty divorce; Lily stayed at home while her parents celebrated their second honeymoon in Fiji. Dash reveled in being alone; Lily is scared of not having anybody. Dash is articulate; Lily is stumped on how to talk to boys (and girls!) her age. But they do have something in common – they love to read. and they wanted to believe that there is someone out there existing just for them. So cute.
I loved Dash‘s character more than Lily’s. His has a certain sadness and hope at the same time. I relished reading his POV because it’s very entertaining to see the switch of his train of thought from simple things to contemplative ones. I loved the scenes where (1) he’s feeling up Santa, (2) he’s being interrogated by Aunt Ida, and (3) he’s being lectured by Boomer, of all people. Dash is very charming in this unobtrusive way that makes being snarly so endearing.
Lily is the odd girl. Wearing her school uniform even during weekends with her worn chucks, she already accepted her eccentricity years ago. But after reading Dash’s writings in her notebook, she thought that maybe it’s time to get out of her family’s comfort and venture to a normal teenage life. I found it funny that she’s this dogwalker who also loves hanging out with her Grandpa’s friends but can give the middle finger on a whim.
Boomer, Aunt Ida, and Mark are secondary characters that made me laugh in more ways i thought possible. I love how they are solid and yet they do not overpower the main characters.
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is a story of what could be the machinings of first love set in snow-capped New York. Dash & Lily’s mismatches left me light-hearted and hopeful. I just felt good after reading it.
DELIGHTFUL.
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is the perfect Christmas read. It took me around New York in the busiest time of the year with Dash’s abhorrence versus Lily’s ecstasy for the holidays. It kinda remind me of the movie Serendipity: same Christmas-in-New-York setting with the same non-meetings but with the longing of meeting the one another.
Dash and Lily are the total opposites. Dash never recovered from his parents’ nasty divorce; Lily stayed at home while her parents celebrated their second honeymoon in Fiji. Dash reveled in being alone; Lily is scared of not having anybody. Dash is articulate; Lily is stumped on how to talk to boys (and girls!) her age. But they do have something in common – they love to read. and they wanted to believe that there is someone out there existing just for them. So cute.
I loved Dash‘s character more than Lily’s. His has a certain sadness and hope at the same time. I relished reading his POV because it’s very entertaining to see the switch of his train of thought from simple things to contemplative ones. I loved the scenes where (1) he’s feeling up Santa, (2) he’s being interrogated by Aunt Ida, and (3) he’s being lectured by Boomer, of all people. Dash is very charming in this unobtrusive way that makes being snarly so endearing.
Lily is the odd girl. Wearing her school uniform even during weekends with her worn chucks, she already accepted her eccentricity years ago. But after reading Dash’s writings in her notebook, she thought that maybe it’s time to get out of her family’s comfort and venture to a normal teenage life. I found it funny that she’s this dogwalker who also loves hanging out with her Grandpa’s friends but can give the middle finger on a whim.
Boomer, Aunt Ida, and Mark are secondary characters that made me laugh in more ways i thought possible. I love how they are solid and yet they do not overpower the main characters.
Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is a story of what could be the machinings of first love set in snow-capped New York. Dash & Lily’s mismatches left me light-hearted and hopeful. I just felt good after reading it.
May 30, 2022
4 ⭐
Prima di leggere questo libro ho visto la serie TV e anche in questo il libro si rivela migliore della serie.
Questo romance epistolare, anche se non si scambiano lettere ma messaggi su una moleskine rossa, è stata una piacevole sorpresa e una boccata d'aria fresca rispetto ai soliti romance che leggo.
I due protagonisti sono Dash e Lily due persone dai caratteri opposti ma che prendono in mano questa "sfida" e decidono di conoscersi parlando soltanto attraverso le parole.
Attraverso la moleskine impareranno a conoscersi in modo intimo, condividendo pensieri ed emozioni che, invece, preferiscono tenere nascosti.
Anche se i protagonisti solo loro la storia è ricca di molti personaggi secondari che svolgono ruoli, a mio parere, importanti per lo sviluppo sia in modo diretto che in modo indiretto.
Lo stile è molto leggero e divertente, si riesce a percepire la differenza della narrazione tra Lily e Dash.
Il libro ha come sfondo la magica e innevata New York nel più sensazionale periodo dell'anno, Natale.
Mi è piaciuto come l'autrice sia riuscita ad alternare momenti più divertenti e leggeri e momenti invece più "seri" e romantici.
P.S. Sarebbe bello poter conoscere un ragazzo come Dash nella vita reale.
Prima di leggere questo libro ho visto la serie TV e anche in questo il libro si rivela migliore della serie.
Questo romance epistolare, anche se non si scambiano lettere ma messaggi su una moleskine rossa, è stata una piacevole sorpresa e una boccata d'aria fresca rispetto ai soliti romance che leggo.
I due protagonisti sono Dash e Lily due persone dai caratteri opposti ma che prendono in mano questa "sfida" e decidono di conoscersi parlando soltanto attraverso le parole.
Attraverso la moleskine impareranno a conoscersi in modo intimo, condividendo pensieri ed emozioni che, invece, preferiscono tenere nascosti.
Anche se i protagonisti solo loro la storia è ricca di molti personaggi secondari che svolgono ruoli, a mio parere, importanti per lo sviluppo sia in modo diretto che in modo indiretto.
Lo stile è molto leggero e divertente, si riesce a percepire la differenza della narrazione tra Lily e Dash.
Il libro ha come sfondo la magica e innevata New York nel più sensazionale periodo dell'anno, Natale.
Mi è piaciuto come l'autrice sia riuscita ad alternare momenti più divertenti e leggeri e momenti invece più "seri" e romantici.
P.S. Sarebbe bello poter conoscere un ragazzo come Dash nella vita reale.
October 14, 2019
Since it is Christmas time it is only proper for me to review a book based on this time of the year.
I am not a big fan of Christmas, mostly because I grew up celebrating the Three Kings’ Day celebration (which is actually really fun, and everyone should celebrate), but also because I am not a big fan of Christmas songs, or films, or the dress code. To me it seems pointless, and the songs give me headaches, and I do not like romance as much. But I do love the family aspect and all that, I am not a total Grinch. So for the longest time I blamed my lack of affection for the holiday as the reason I did not enjoy this book at all, now I realize it is not my fault, but the book is truly horrid (sorry Torie and all my friends that loved it, but I am not really sorry, because I hate it).
It follows Dash and Lily as they sent each other clues via books. Interesting story right? Well yes, but poorly developed.
It was not a good book, simply was not. The characters were the biggest issue.
Dash: a misanthropic boy, as in dislikes humanity. It is not like he picked up Moliere, Swift, or Plato and saw their reasoning and decided being misanthropic made sense for him, nah, he is just like that with no actually good motive. I mean, this kid compares himself to a Bolshevik. I do not think he has ever in his life read what a Bolshevik is, and is just trying to sound cool, which he fails. I am not going to attack the way he speaks, because I talk like that to my friends most of the time, because I am like that, however, his voice really did not suit him. Not because he is a teen and it is smart talk, but because I cannot actually believe Dash is clever at all. One of the instances he tries to be is this one: “ “Happy Hanukkah,” I said. Because I always liked to say the wrong holiday, just to see how the other person would react.” As if another person’s religious holiday should be a funny thing. Let us just go around and test everyone on what they believe in, and if they pick up on it and try to explain to us that they go by another holiday, then they must be horrid people, when in reality, Dash is the horrid one. You are not Augustus Waters at all sir, nope, nope, and nope.
Lily: Nah, she is not my type of character at all. Not because I am a Grinch and she loves Christmas, but because she had no depth at all. I do not think she was superficial, she did seem to love Christmas and all that, but she seemed like a cut out carbon copy of one of those romantic comedies where the girl’s sole purpose is to be there for the bettering of the man character, not a manic pixie dream girl, but something along those lines. The big peeve though was how shallow she actually is. Throughput most of the book, as she is figuring out all of the clues, she keeps hoping the guy is cute and not ugly. She also then goes on to offend Hermione Granger from Harry Potter: “ I’ve always resented Hermione, because I wanted to be her so badly and she never seemed to appreciate as much as I thought she should that she got to be her. She got to live at Hogwarts be friends with Harry and kiss Ron, which was supposed to happen to me.” Excuse you! What the hell is this? What did she want Hermione to do? Act like a stereotypical muggle-born? Being constantly grateful for her skills instead of being cool about it like everyone else? Crawl through the floor and wipe the boots of prejudiced purebloods with her tongue as thank you? I am terrified that people like her exist.
And it is not as if the writing was so brilliant that I could ignore these imbeciles. No, it was bellow average. Look I love John Green’s writing, he writes smart characters with smart mouths that remind me of myself, but this book took all of the “intelligent talk” and gave it to a pretentious little possum that seemed to never have actually heard of any of these things in the correct context and just used them without having any knowledge of what they were.
The only thing in this book that made some sense was this: “You think fairy tales are only for girls? Here’s a hint - ask yourself who wrote them. I assure you, it wasn’t just the women. It’s the great male fantasy - all it takes is one dance to know that she’s the one. All it takes is the sound of her song from the tower, or a look at her sleeping face. And right away you know - this is the girl in your head, sleeping or dancing or singing in front of you. Yes, girls want their princes, but boys want their princesses just as much. And they don’t want a very long courtships. They want to know immediately.”
I am not a big fan of Christmas, mostly because I grew up celebrating the Three Kings’ Day celebration (which is actually really fun, and everyone should celebrate), but also because I am not a big fan of Christmas songs, or films, or the dress code. To me it seems pointless, and the songs give me headaches, and I do not like romance as much. But I do love the family aspect and all that, I am not a total Grinch. So for the longest time I blamed my lack of affection for the holiday as the reason I did not enjoy this book at all, now I realize it is not my fault, but the book is truly horrid (sorry Torie and all my friends that loved it, but I am not really sorry, because I hate it).
It follows Dash and Lily as they sent each other clues via books. Interesting story right? Well yes, but poorly developed.
It was not a good book, simply was not. The characters were the biggest issue.
Dash: a misanthropic boy, as in dislikes humanity. It is not like he picked up Moliere, Swift, or Plato and saw their reasoning and decided being misanthropic made sense for him, nah, he is just like that with no actually good motive. I mean, this kid compares himself to a Bolshevik. I do not think he has ever in his life read what a Bolshevik is, and is just trying to sound cool, which he fails. I am not going to attack the way he speaks, because I talk like that to my friends most of the time, because I am like that, however, his voice really did not suit him. Not because he is a teen and it is smart talk, but because I cannot actually believe Dash is clever at all. One of the instances he tries to be is this one: “ “Happy Hanukkah,” I said. Because I always liked to say the wrong holiday, just to see how the other person would react.” As if another person’s religious holiday should be a funny thing. Let us just go around and test everyone on what they believe in, and if they pick up on it and try to explain to us that they go by another holiday, then they must be horrid people, when in reality, Dash is the horrid one. You are not Augustus Waters at all sir, nope, nope, and nope.
Lily: Nah, she is not my type of character at all. Not because I am a Grinch and she loves Christmas, but because she had no depth at all. I do not think she was superficial, she did seem to love Christmas and all that, but she seemed like a cut out carbon copy of one of those romantic comedies where the girl’s sole purpose is to be there for the bettering of the man character, not a manic pixie dream girl, but something along those lines. The big peeve though was how shallow she actually is. Throughput most of the book, as she is figuring out all of the clues, she keeps hoping the guy is cute and not ugly. She also then goes on to offend Hermione Granger from Harry Potter: “ I’ve always resented Hermione, because I wanted to be her so badly and she never seemed to appreciate as much as I thought she should that she got to be her. She got to live at Hogwarts be friends with Harry and kiss Ron, which was supposed to happen to me.” Excuse you! What the hell is this? What did she want Hermione to do? Act like a stereotypical muggle-born? Being constantly grateful for her skills instead of being cool about it like everyone else? Crawl through the floor and wipe the boots of prejudiced purebloods with her tongue as thank you? I am terrified that people like her exist.
And it is not as if the writing was so brilliant that I could ignore these imbeciles. No, it was bellow average. Look I love John Green’s writing, he writes smart characters with smart mouths that remind me of myself, but this book took all of the “intelligent talk” and gave it to a pretentious little possum that seemed to never have actually heard of any of these things in the correct context and just used them without having any knowledge of what they were.
The only thing in this book that made some sense was this: “You think fairy tales are only for girls? Here’s a hint - ask yourself who wrote them. I assure you, it wasn’t just the women. It’s the great male fantasy - all it takes is one dance to know that she’s the one. All it takes is the sound of her song from the tower, or a look at her sleeping face. And right away you know - this is the girl in your head, sleeping or dancing or singing in front of you. Yes, girls want their princes, but boys want their princesses just as much. And they don’t want a very long courtships. They want to know immediately.”
February 7, 2017
I was looking for some young adult Christmas books to read over the holidays and I chose Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares &
Let It Snow
. I thought Dash & Lily was going to be a cute, Christmas read and nothing more. I didn’t expect it to be so witty and ingenious. I loved Dash straight away. Some people will certainly find him obnoxious at first (he’ll quite happily refer to himself as erudite and bookish), but I love a guy who’s articulate without being pretentious. We’re introduced to Dash first as he discovers Lily’s red moleskin notebook, instructing him to find a book on French Pianism. And this (wonderful, brilliant idea) sends him on a journey where impulsiveness is a requirement.
Dash & Lily is one of those books that made me want to go on an adventure. I wanted to pack my bags and head to NYC, bake Lebkuchen spice cookies, and spend all day in The Strand bookshop. It’s one of those books that reminded me that while spending all day reading is a wonderful thing, I didn’t want to be one of those people that envies the lives of fictional characters. If I wanted to be eating a chocolate pizza at Max Brenner (actually, I’d choose The S’mores Concoction) then I bloody well needed to go out there and do it! However, even if Dash & Lily doesn’t persuade you to make life changing decisions, you’ll still love both Dash and Lily and the myriad of eccentric characters that you’ll come across. It’s hilarious to the point where it actually made me laugh out loud, rather than just smile. I particularly enjoyed Dash’s quick-witted banter about tea with Lily’s aunt.
So, Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is definitely one of my favourite books of 2011. I’d suggest running to the nearest bookshop (specifically, The Strand, if you’re able to) and buying it straight away! Don’t wait until Christmas 2012.
I also reviewed this book over on Pretty Books.
Dash & Lily is one of those books that made me want to go on an adventure. I wanted to pack my bags and head to NYC, bake Lebkuchen spice cookies, and spend all day in The Strand bookshop. It’s one of those books that reminded me that while spending all day reading is a wonderful thing, I didn’t want to be one of those people that envies the lives of fictional characters. If I wanted to be eating a chocolate pizza at Max Brenner (actually, I’d choose The S’mores Concoction) then I bloody well needed to go out there and do it! However, even if Dash & Lily doesn’t persuade you to make life changing decisions, you’ll still love both Dash and Lily and the myriad of eccentric characters that you’ll come across. It’s hilarious to the point where it actually made me laugh out loud, rather than just smile. I particularly enjoyed Dash’s quick-witted banter about tea with Lily’s aunt.
So, Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is definitely one of my favourite books of 2011. I’d suggest running to the nearest bookshop (specifically, The Strand, if you’re able to) and buying it straight away! Don’t wait until Christmas 2012.
I also reviewed this book over on Pretty Books.
March 28, 2011
This book was cute and funny, but failed to make me care about the actual characters as opposed to the things happening to them.
I liked the premise. Two unusual individuals communicate through a moleskin notebook and kindle an awkward romance - but meeting in real life brings a myriad of difficulties they never imagined. There were so many interesting ideas in this book: Can love really bloom from interactions not taking place in real life? Should one should wait for love to come to them or actively pursue it? And what is love, to be exact?
The flaw that presented itself was the development of these themes - they could have been deep and introspective, but seemed shoddy and stale. Neither Dash or Lily grabbed my heart, and I could barely connect to them through all the random events taking place (for example, when Dash is attacked with snowballs by little kids while carrying a bag of yogurt).
Books from these two authors may not be my thing, but fans of David Levithan and Rachel Cohn's previous works will probably enjoy Dash & Lily's Book of Dares.
Want to read more of my writing? Follow me here.
I liked the premise. Two unusual individuals communicate through a moleskin notebook and kindle an awkward romance - but meeting in real life brings a myriad of difficulties they never imagined. There were so many interesting ideas in this book: Can love really bloom from interactions not taking place in real life? Should one should wait for love to come to them or actively pursue it? And what is love, to be exact?
The flaw that presented itself was the development of these themes - they could have been deep and introspective, but seemed shoddy and stale. Neither Dash or Lily grabbed my heart, and I could barely connect to them through all the random events taking place (for example, when Dash is attacked with snowballs by little kids while carrying a bag of yogurt).
Books from these two authors may not be my thing, but fans of David Levithan and Rachel Cohn's previous works will probably enjoy Dash & Lily's Book of Dares.
Want to read more of my writing? Follow me here.
January 1, 2018
sorry for being a poopie buddy reader @ annie ;-;
this was cute tho, at least things are consistent.
RTC ?? maybe
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Buddy read and reread with the #1 dash and lily fanatic
truthfully i dont remember much from this book besides the excellent dosage of dry humour and the cute winter feels it gave me
December 12, 2020
Nothing says Christmas quite like this book. Which is why I was so delighted to see that Netflix had adapted it and not only given it a movie but a series (perhaps even with more seasons to come) - which, in turn, prompted a re-read of course!
A classic New York tale of a snarky boy and a cheerful girl who hate/love Christmas and are brought together by their mutual love of books. Is there a more perfect thing than people bonding over stories?!
This is the ultimate comfort read that always gets me in the right mood. It's like hot chocolate, Lebkuchen, a crackling fireplace, tea or a cozy blanket.
The writing is snarky like Dash, charming like Lily, witty, infectuously Christmas-y (yes, that is totally grammatically correct ;P), hilarious and full of heart - and as a bookworm I love getting all the references or finding new loves when looking stuff up! :D
I even have the series' soundtrack now and went to the effort of noting all the differences between the book and series (some things were actually done better in the screen adaptation, I thought).
To quote another movie that delights bibliophiles: "Read it, I know you'll love it!"
Original review:
I read this book as some light reading in between. For some fluff. Imagine my surprise when I found that what was between the pages was instead a profound quest for the meaning of life and love; a story of self-discovery and humour beyond measure.
The chapters were written by two different authors - Rachel Cohn writing Lily's and David Levithan writing Dash's. Apparently (according to the information at the end of the book) they swapped chapters much like Dash and Lily swapped dares. And it works perfectly.
What struck me most was how much many of Dash's and Lily's views resonated with me. Just to give you a glimpse, here's a notebook entry from Dash:
Or here a notebook entry from Lily:
Some musing from Lily's brother Langston:
And some wisdom from Sofia:
You see what I mean, then, about this book being profound? Elemental questions asked and answered by not just Dash and Lily but, to some extend, the people around them (young and old).
Not to mention the refreshingly natural way the authors included people from the LGBTQ community without seeming pretentious or forcing the issue to be up-to-date (I hate that so much in most currently released stories).
But there were two negative points too.
Maybe it's because I was always a pretty sincere person (joking around, sure, but I mean when it comes to the cornerstones of life), even at the age of 16, that I did not like/support the prospect of "let's see where this takes us". I mean, Dash basically told Lily that he'd be with Sofia if she wasn't living in Spain, that Lily therefore is sort of a consolation prize!
Many people will forgive this, also because most people believe in "just being with someone you like" and "getting experienced" or "enjoying love whenever it comes your way" whereas silly little me actually believes in The One.
Others might also forgive this because the MCs are only 16. But as I said, I was like that even back then (which explains a lot). And for such "frivolity" to come from Dash of all people, who has been through a rough divorce/custody battle so he knows how love can hurt and shouldn't be handed out to just anybody ...
And then there was Lily's night of "fun" that wasn't much better.
I'm not saying these two things were portrayed in an unrealistic way, just that I don't like it (neither in real life nor in stories).
The rest was, of course, pretty sweet. Poetic and nerdy and (thanks to Lily's extended family as well as some overbearing mothers and a dog named Boris) ludicruously funny. So yes, I enjoyed the hell out of it, not least because both MCs are pretty bookish so that was something else I could identify with.
A classic New York tale of a snarky boy and a cheerful girl who hate/love Christmas and are brought together by their mutual love of books. Is there a more perfect thing than people bonding over stories?!
This is the ultimate comfort read that always gets me in the right mood. It's like hot chocolate, Lebkuchen, a crackling fireplace, tea or a cozy blanket.
The writing is snarky like Dash, charming like Lily, witty, infectuously Christmas-y (yes, that is totally grammatically correct ;P), hilarious and full of heart - and as a bookworm I love getting all the references or finding new loves when looking stuff up! :D
I even have the series' soundtrack now and went to the effort of noting all the differences between the book and series (some things were actually done better in the screen adaptation, I thought).
To quote another movie that delights bibliophiles: "Read it, I know you'll love it!"
Original review:
I read this book as some light reading in between. For some fluff. Imagine my surprise when I found that what was between the pages was instead a profound quest for the meaning of life and love; a story of self-discovery and humour beyond measure.
The chapters were written by two different authors - Rachel Cohn writing Lily's and David Levithan writing Dash's. Apparently (according to the information at the end of the book) they swapped chapters much like Dash and Lily swapped dares. And it works perfectly.
What struck me most was how much many of Dash's and Lily's views resonated with me. Just to give you a glimpse, here's a notebook entry from Dash:
We believe the wrong things. […] That’s what frustrates me the most. Not the lack of belief, but the belief in the wrong things. You want meaning? Well, the meanings are out there. We’re just so damn good at reading them wrong. […] I don’t think meaning is something that can be explained. You have to understand it on your own. It’s like when you’re starting to read. First, you learn the letters. Then, once you know what sounds the letters make, you use them to sound out words. You know that c-a-t leads to cat and d-o-g leads to dog. But then you have to make that extra leap, to understand that the word, the sond, the „cat“ is connected to an actual cat, and that „dog“ is connected to an actual dog. It’s that leap, that understanding, that leads to meaning. And a lot of the time in life, we’re still just sounding things out. We know the sentences and how to say them. We know the ideas and how to present them. We know the prayers and which words to say in what order. But that’s only spelling.
Or here a notebook entry from Lily:
I want to belive there is a somebody out there just for me. I want to believe that I exist to be there for that somebody.
Some musing from Lily's brother Langston:
The important people in our lives leave imprints. They may stay or go in the physical realm, but they are always there in your heart, because they helped form your heart. There’s no getting over that.
And some wisdom from Sofia:
It’s up to you, not fate.
You see what I mean, then, about this book being profound? Elemental questions asked and answered by not just Dash and Lily but, to some extend, the people around them (young and old).
Not to mention the refreshingly natural way the authors included people from the LGBTQ community without seeming pretentious or forcing the issue to be up-to-date (I hate that so much in most currently released stories).
But there were two negative points too.
Maybe it's because I was always a pretty sincere person (joking around, sure, but I mean when it comes to the cornerstones of life), even at the age of 16, that I did not like/support the prospect of "let's see where this takes us". I mean, Dash basically told Lily that he'd be with Sofia if she wasn't living in Spain, that Lily therefore is sort of a consolation prize!
Many people will forgive this, also because most people believe in "just being with someone you like" and "getting experienced" or "enjoying love whenever it comes your way" whereas silly little me actually believes in The One.
Others might also forgive this because the MCs are only 16. But as I said, I was like that even back then (which explains a lot). And for such "frivolity" to come from Dash of all people, who has been through a rough divorce/custody battle so he knows how love can hurt and shouldn't be handed out to just anybody ...
And then there was Lily's night of "fun" that wasn't much better.
I'm not saying these two things were portrayed in an unrealistic way, just that I don't like it (neither in real life nor in stories).
The rest was, of course, pretty sweet. Poetic and nerdy and (thanks to Lily's extended family as well as some overbearing mothers and a dog named Boris) ludicruously funny. So yes, I enjoyed the hell out of it, not least because both MCs are pretty bookish so that was something else I could identify with.
December 30, 2016
What began as a literary treasure hunt flirtation between a couple of cute kids quickly became...
A truly delightful and innocent romance. :)
Believe me, no one is more shocked than me how much I fell into and loved this little book. I mean, it wasn't just the literary side or the well-spoken Snarl or the impulsive Lily. It was the entire shape of the novel with all of the normal conventions: the shy flirtations, the near misses, the almost-meetings, and then, most dangerously, the other boys and girls. It was all delightful and sooooo innocent. :) Even the Crimson Alert and the Sweaty Santa, it evokes a different sensation in adults, still managed to come across as INNOCENT on the page.
And I liked it. I really really liked it.
It's like opening a door to an alternate dimension and discovering that everything is gentle and loyal and honorable and smart. *shiver* It's so odd! And pretty! :)
And of course, the writing is also quite beautiful, too. And charming. :)
A truly delightful and innocent romance. :)
Believe me, no one is more shocked than me how much I fell into and loved this little book. I mean, it wasn't just the literary side or the well-spoken Snarl or the impulsive Lily. It was the entire shape of the novel with all of the normal conventions: the shy flirtations, the near misses, the almost-meetings, and then, most dangerously, the other boys and girls. It was all delightful and sooooo innocent. :) Even the Crimson Alert and the Sweaty Santa, it evokes a different sensation in adults, still managed to come across as INNOCENT on the page.
And I liked it. I really really liked it.
It's like opening a door to an alternate dimension and discovering that everything is gentle and loyal and honorable and smart. *shiver* It's so odd! And pretty! :)
And of course, the writing is also quite beautiful, too. And charming. :)
September 4, 2011
TBR Reduce Challenge #22- 2011 (Stefanie)
I got a few strange, even evil, looks after explaining I was reading a Christmas book in spring. Like I'm daring the winter weather to come back to Canada and piss everyone off. But, I didn't really care since this book was an absolute hoot!
I really don't have to much to say about this book, except It was freaken hilarious and I don't think I've had so much fun reading about two characters who don't even meet till almost the end of the book, but never the less, Dash and Lily are quite the amusing couple. Intelligent, snarky and very daring. It was fun seeing where these two will take each other, and the reader next, not to mention what they made each other do. Hats off to the other secondary characters, all of them and I mean all of them seemed to add that extra blast to the plot. Loved the writing! It was the perfect pace for a fun filled adventure around the streets of NY.
Bottom line, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares was a really fun read. It made me laugh out loud and smile a stupid smile and it was even worth the weird death stares. Loved it!
Some of my favorite quotes/moments (There are tons, so these are just a few)
~"It looks like Animal and Miss Piggy had sex, and this was the spawn"
~Feeling up Santa (LOL!)
~The Secret tactic of a good hard bargainer is know when to compromise.
For instance.
I will demand a puppy if I am forced to move to Fiji.
But I will settle for a bunny.
~"I was just trying to imagine a situation where one person would need twelve umbrellas. It seems almost indecent to have so many, when there are so many people who don't have any."
~"With all due respect, if you’re forty three, then I’m a fetus."
~"Because you know how a cow chews grass? And he or she chews and chews and chews? Well, green tea tastes like French-kissing that cow after it’s done chewing all that grass."
...and basically the whole Q&A between grandma and Dash;)
Fun stuff! Great book! Read it!
I got a few strange, even evil, looks after explaining I was reading a Christmas book in spring. Like I'm daring the winter weather to come back to Canada and piss everyone off. But, I didn't really care since this book was an absolute hoot!
I really don't have to much to say about this book, except It was freaken hilarious and I don't think I've had so much fun reading about two characters who don't even meet till almost the end of the book, but never the less, Dash and Lily are quite the amusing couple. Intelligent, snarky and very daring. It was fun seeing where these two will take each other, and the reader next, not to mention what they made each other do. Hats off to the other secondary characters, all of them and I mean all of them seemed to add that extra blast to the plot. Loved the writing! It was the perfect pace for a fun filled adventure around the streets of NY.
Bottom line, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares was a really fun read. It made me laugh out loud and smile a stupid smile and it was even worth the weird death stares. Loved it!
Some of my favorite quotes/moments (There are tons, so these are just a few)
~"It looks like Animal and Miss Piggy had sex, and this was the spawn"
~Feeling up Santa (LOL!)
~The Secret tactic of a good hard bargainer is know when to compromise.
For instance.
I will demand a puppy if I am forced to move to Fiji.
But I will settle for a bunny.
~"I was just trying to imagine a situation where one person would need twelve umbrellas. It seems almost indecent to have so many, when there are so many people who don't have any."
~"With all due respect, if you’re forty three, then I’m a fetus."
~"Because you know how a cow chews grass? And he or she chews and chews and chews? Well, green tea tastes like French-kissing that cow after it’s done chewing all that grass."
...and basically the whole Q&A between grandma and Dash;)
Fun stuff! Great book! Read it!
August 14, 2022
3.5 stars
A cute and lighthearted read.
I watched the Netflix series a couple years back and recently came across the books. Reading this brought back all of the sweet and humorous moments of the show. 😊
Dash and Lily are both spending the Christmas holiday without their parents. Lily is quirky and a bit awkward with eccentric tastes. Not having many friends or love interests, her brother helps her put together a notebook puzzle hidden in her favorite bookstore. Dash, a rather unusual teen with eclectic tastes, soon finds it. Intrigued by this mystery girl, he sends her on another hunt with the notebook. They exchange notes back and forth visiting odd places all over New York City. Eventually they meet, but they don’t hit it off initially due to the less than ideal circumstances. Through much adventure they get to know each other and form a bond.
This was a quick read. It takes you on a rather peculiar goose chase through Manhattan. There wasn’t much mystery to it, as the story was pretty predictable with just a couple hurdles. The book had good scenery. I felt transported into the holiday cheer and chaos of the city.
Lily’s character was relatable, as she learns to stand up for herself and become more fearless. However, Dash’s character was rather snarly and unlikable. He felt like a grumpy 75 year old living in a teenagers body. Although, there were some endearing sideline characters that added to the story’s charm.
Overall, this was a fun YA story with nice messages about being open minded, taking risks, and embracing the unknown. I’m looking forward to reading the next two books in the series. 😊
A cute and lighthearted read.
I watched the Netflix series a couple years back and recently came across the books. Reading this brought back all of the sweet and humorous moments of the show. 😊
Dash and Lily are both spending the Christmas holiday without their parents. Lily is quirky and a bit awkward with eccentric tastes. Not having many friends or love interests, her brother helps her put together a notebook puzzle hidden in her favorite bookstore. Dash, a rather unusual teen with eclectic tastes, soon finds it. Intrigued by this mystery girl, he sends her on another hunt with the notebook. They exchange notes back and forth visiting odd places all over New York City. Eventually they meet, but they don’t hit it off initially due to the less than ideal circumstances. Through much adventure they get to know each other and form a bond.
This was a quick read. It takes you on a rather peculiar goose chase through Manhattan. There wasn’t much mystery to it, as the story was pretty predictable with just a couple hurdles. The book had good scenery. I felt transported into the holiday cheer and chaos of the city.
Lily’s character was relatable, as she learns to stand up for herself and become more fearless. However, Dash’s character was rather snarly and unlikable. He felt like a grumpy 75 year old living in a teenagers body. Although, there were some endearing sideline characters that added to the story’s charm.
Overall, this was a fun YA story with nice messages about being open minded, taking risks, and embracing the unknown. I’m looking forward to reading the next two books in the series. 😊
December 22, 2010
Rating Clarification: 4.5 Stars
I loved this book. A.L.O.T.!! And all I can chalk it up to is the fact that I needed a good laugh. I downright, gut wrenching good laugh and this book did it. I literally laughed so much throughout the story that I’d stop and read passages to whatever family member was in listening distance because to me… it was comic brilliance. That is the true markings of a funny book IMO, when my family yells in surrender, “Enough! We know you’ve lost your mind!”
The dares were fun and exciting and the characters that made up this story warmed my heart. Their epistolary flirtation was continuously captivating and I didn’t want the red notebook journey to end. I wish I would have had the nerve to pull off a stunt like that when I was a teenager. What a hoot!
Dash is the king of hilarious!! I want to possess his snark. He is my snark hero. *applauds* His snarly, pensive, yet caring character was worthy of a fictional crush.
Favorite Dash lines:
I’m looking for ‘Fat Hoochie Prom Queen.’ No response. It’s a BOOK, not a person.
Hello, my name ees Lebkuchen Spice, and I vant to show you my coooooookies….
It looks like Animal and Miss Piggy had sex, and this was the spawn.
Ex-squeamish me?!
With all due respect, if you’re forty three, then I’m a fetus.
Because you know how a cow chews grass? And he or she chews and chews and chews? Well, green tea tastes like French-kissing that cow after it’s done chewing all that grass.
LMAO!
Lily is quirky and funny as hell! Props to her for giving it one more try after her epic, embarrassing debut to Dash. I loved her style and come on! I’m a sucker for animal lovers. My kind of girl… no doubt.
Favorite Lily lines:
Do you speak Catalan? ‘No’ Lily responded. I said no in Catalan, but since the word sounds the same in English, Hermione didn’t notice.
I had my two favorite dogs with me in the park – Lola and Dude, a little pug-Chi mix and a giant chocolate Lab. It’s true love between them. You can tell by how eagerly they sniff each other’s ….
“Okay!” Lilly screeched. “Let’s go upstairs! I love books about freaks.” Because I am one. You might be too. Let’s be freaks together?
Snap. Crackly. Dash yum. Ouch. Cursing – not so dashing.
Great book that’s a perfect read for the Christmas holidays! Don't make me dare you to read it... :P
I loved this book. A.L.O.T.!! And all I can chalk it up to is the fact that I needed a good laugh. I downright, gut wrenching good laugh and this book did it. I literally laughed so much throughout the story that I’d stop and read passages to whatever family member was in listening distance because to me… it was comic brilliance. That is the true markings of a funny book IMO, when my family yells in surrender, “Enough! We know you’ve lost your mind!”
The dares were fun and exciting and the characters that made up this story warmed my heart. Their epistolary flirtation was continuously captivating and I didn’t want the red notebook journey to end. I wish I would have had the nerve to pull off a stunt like that when I was a teenager. What a hoot!
Dash is the king of hilarious!! I want to possess his snark. He is my snark hero. *applauds* His snarly, pensive, yet caring character was worthy of a fictional crush.
Favorite Dash lines:
I’m looking for ‘Fat Hoochie Prom Queen.’ No response. It’s a BOOK, not a person.
Hello, my name ees Lebkuchen Spice, and I vant to show you my coooooookies….
It looks like Animal and Miss Piggy had sex, and this was the spawn.
Ex-squeamish me?!
With all due respect, if you’re forty three, then I’m a fetus.
Because you know how a cow chews grass? And he or she chews and chews and chews? Well, green tea tastes like French-kissing that cow after it’s done chewing all that grass.
LMAO!
Lily is quirky and funny as hell! Props to her for giving it one more try after her epic, embarrassing debut to Dash. I loved her style and come on! I’m a sucker for animal lovers. My kind of girl… no doubt.
Favorite Lily lines:
Do you speak Catalan? ‘No’ Lily responded. I said no in Catalan, but since the word sounds the same in English, Hermione didn’t notice.
I had my two favorite dogs with me in the park – Lola and Dude, a little pug-Chi mix and a giant chocolate Lab. It’s true love between them. You can tell by how eagerly they sniff each other’s ….
“Okay!” Lilly screeched. “Let’s go upstairs! I love books about freaks.” Because I am one. You might be too. Let’s be freaks together?
Snap. Crackly. Dash yum. Ouch. Cursing – not so dashing.
Great book that’s a perfect read for the Christmas holidays! Don't make me dare you to read it... :P
December 14, 2022
Re-read
“But isn't this a dance? Isn't all of this a dance? Isn't that what we do with words? Isn't that what we do when we talk, when we spar, when we make plans or leave it to chance? Some of it's choreographed. Some of the steps have been done for ages. And the rest -- the rest is spontaneous. The rest has to be decided on the floor, in the moment, before the music ends.”
Somehow, most years since Christmas 2010, I end up re-reading Dash and Lily's Book of Dares. It isn't a literary classic but somehow this book talks to me, combining colourful characters, brilliant dialogue, hilarious situations, New York during the festive season, all tied up as a light YA romance with a heavy literary taste.
“I was horribly bookish, to the point of coming right out and saying it, which I knew was not socially acceptable. I particularly loved the adjective bookish, which I found other people used about as often as ramrod or chum or teetotaler.”
“It looks like Animal and Miss piggy had sex," I said. "And this was the spawn."
"My eyes!" Boomer cried. "My eyes! I can't stop seeing it now that you've said it!”
The idea of leaving a notebook with clues in a bookshop to find a kindred spirit is just spot on for a book lover like me. Dash and Lily 'meet' through this medium and share messages and stories while compelling each other to seek out the notebook from hiding places around the city. At first, the deliciously crafted dares spur the characters on, but soon the messages become much more important. Both end up expressing their beliefs and feelings, allowing them to be more truthfull and open than if they'd met face to face, with positive and negative consequences.
“Be careful what you’re doing, because no one is ever who you want them to be. And the less you really know them, the more likely you are to confuse them with the girl or boy in your head”
This witty and quirky story is just the ticket to get you in the mood for Christmas.
PS: Yes, when I visited New York, I just had to go to The Strand and have a look...
PPS: Netflix has adapted this book into a mini series, and it is lovely. Not exactly the same, but they have kept the spirit :O)
“But isn't this a dance? Isn't all of this a dance? Isn't that what we do with words? Isn't that what we do when we talk, when we spar, when we make plans or leave it to chance? Some of it's choreographed. Some of the steps have been done for ages. And the rest -- the rest is spontaneous. The rest has to be decided on the floor, in the moment, before the music ends.”
Somehow, most years since Christmas 2010, I end up re-reading Dash and Lily's Book of Dares. It isn't a literary classic but somehow this book talks to me, combining colourful characters, brilliant dialogue, hilarious situations, New York during the festive season, all tied up as a light YA romance with a heavy literary taste.
“I was horribly bookish, to the point of coming right out and saying it, which I knew was not socially acceptable. I particularly loved the adjective bookish, which I found other people used about as often as ramrod or chum or teetotaler.”
“It looks like Animal and Miss piggy had sex," I said. "And this was the spawn."
"My eyes!" Boomer cried. "My eyes! I can't stop seeing it now that you've said it!”
The idea of leaving a notebook with clues in a bookshop to find a kindred spirit is just spot on for a book lover like me. Dash and Lily 'meet' through this medium and share messages and stories while compelling each other to seek out the notebook from hiding places around the city. At first, the deliciously crafted dares spur the characters on, but soon the messages become much more important. Both end up expressing their beliefs and feelings, allowing them to be more truthfull and open than if they'd met face to face, with positive and negative consequences.
“Be careful what you’re doing, because no one is ever who you want them to be. And the less you really know them, the more likely you are to confuse them with the girl or boy in your head”
This witty and quirky story is just the ticket to get you in the mood for Christmas.
PS: Yes, when I visited New York, I just had to go to The Strand and have a look...
PPS: Netflix has adapted this book into a mini series, and it is lovely. Not exactly the same, but they have kept the spirit :O)
April 5, 2017
Video duology review (spoiler free)- https://youtu.be/GMrMYuM5_k4
I love, love, loved the premise of this book - that two people communicate through a notebook that they leave around the city for each other to find. And the portion of this book where Dash and Lily's relationship was confined to the notebook probably earned 5 stars from me. However, I started to lose interest once they met in person. Not because they met, I still thought they were their charming selves, but there was a scene that seemed SO whacky that I couldn't understand why this was added to the plot. It was just a little too silly for me, it didn't sit well in the tone of the rest of the book.
The other thing I really didn't like was the ending. You know, I think that there is a way to end a book at the beginning of a scene and still impart a sense of closure to it, but this book did not do that. I felt like I was cut off mid sentence. It was like, oh hey there aren't any pages left so we'd better just wrap this up. It felt sloppy to me. It didn't feel like an ending. There was no sense of closure, and leading up to it there was no sense of urgency that we were reaching any kind of resolution. I mean, I feel like where they ended it was a good stopping place, it just didn't have the correct words and feeling to satisfy me. So, a star gets lost, sorry.
I believe this book covers the dates Dec 21st through Jan 1st. I actually started reading it on Dec 21st (not planned) so it was a neat experience to read about the characters on the same day. If that makes sense? Anyway, just thought I would let anyone know who is like me and can only tolerate Christmas theme books at Christmas time.
I love, love, loved the premise of this book - that two people communicate through a notebook that they leave around the city for each other to find. And the portion of this book where Dash and Lily's relationship was confined to the notebook probably earned 5 stars from me. However, I started to lose interest once they met in person. Not because they met, I still thought they were their charming selves, but there was a scene that seemed SO whacky that I couldn't understand why this was added to the plot. It was just a little too silly for me, it didn't sit well in the tone of the rest of the book.
The other thing I really didn't like was the ending. You know, I think that there is a way to end a book at the beginning of a scene and still impart a sense of closure to it, but this book did not do that. I felt like I was cut off mid sentence. It was like, oh hey there aren't any pages left so we'd better just wrap this up. It felt sloppy to me. It didn't feel like an ending. There was no sense of closure, and leading up to it there was no sense of urgency that we were reaching any kind of resolution. I mean, I feel like where they ended it was a good stopping place, it just didn't have the correct words and feeling to satisfy me. So, a star gets lost, sorry.
I believe this book covers the dates Dec 21st through Jan 1st. I actually started reading it on Dec 21st (not planned) so it was a neat experience to read about the characters on the same day. If that makes sense? Anyway, just thought I would let anyone know who is like me and can only tolerate Christmas theme books at Christmas time.
November 25, 2015
I gave this a 2.5/5 as I read it easily front to back without losing too much interest, but it was extremely forgettable. I definitely see myself a year from now not remembering any real plot points of this book, I didn't really connect with the characters but it did keep my attention. I think the authors are talented and did a great job as a team and I do plan to pick up their other book collaborations.
September 27, 2014
Oh dear.
I was so prepared to fall for this book.
I was expecting something quirky, fun and extremely cute. I was expecting this book to put me in a festive mood even though Christmas is still months away. I just wanted something refreshing. I wanted something like hot chocolate and marshmallows and snow! Yeah, I'm kind of in that mood right now.
See those lights? I thought this book was like those lights, fun and changing and just awesome.
I didn't get any of that. I didn't even feel anything other than the need to finish this book soon so that I can move on to the next one.
What I did get were two annoying, pretentious main characters who irked me like crazy. Dash and Lily were constantly trying to be smart and snarly and cool. They didn't seem like realistic characters to me. You know that feeling you get when you see someone trying to act really smart and cool and completely failing at it? I had that feeling throughout the whole book.
I was so prepared to fall for this book.
I was expecting something quirky, fun and extremely cute. I was expecting this book to put me in a festive mood even though Christmas is still months away. I just wanted something refreshing. I wanted something like hot chocolate and marshmallows and snow! Yeah, I'm kind of in that mood right now.
See those lights? I thought this book was like those lights, fun and changing and just awesome.
I didn't get any of that. I didn't even feel anything other than the need to finish this book soon so that I can move on to the next one.
What I did get were two annoying, pretentious main characters who irked me like crazy. Dash and Lily were constantly trying to be smart and snarly and cool. They didn't seem like realistic characters to me. You know that feeling you get when you see someone trying to act really smart and cool and completely failing at it? I had that feeling throughout the whole book.
Read
November 29, 2021It starts with a red notebook. Lily and Dash share a special passion that brings them together. The two communicate with a book at Christmas time and get to know each other. Each builds an illusion, but can this reverie stand up to the truth? or does reality run in a different direction. What if suddenly the past is at the door and the future could change faster than planned?
A love story with a lot of humour and romance. The series brought it to my attention and it was a very good decision to read it....
A love story with a lot of humour and romance. The series brought it to my attention and it was a very good decision to read it....
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