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Dash & Lily's Book of Dares

by Rachel Cohn, David Levithan (Goodreads Author)

3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 · rating details · 20,777 ratings · 2,660 reviews

"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...more

Paperback, 260 pages

Published October 11th 2011 by Ember (first published January 1st 2010)

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61st out of 198 books — 300 voters

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Community Reviews

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Dec 13, 2012 tonya. rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, 2011, meh, sucksauce, could-not-finish, contemporary

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.)

39 likes · like · see review

Nov 28, 2010 Janina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult-fiction, romance, lgbt, covers-i-love, winter-books, on-my-shelf, contemporary, read-in-2010, alternating-pov, comfort-reads, just-hilarious, pure-entertainment

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...more

23 likes · like · see review

Feb 28, 2013 Jax rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Nobody looking for a cute romantic comedy.

Shelves: young-adult, icky-authors, go-fuck-yourself, dnf, i-smell-transphobia, lol-no, pathetic-heroine, shit-pile, bluebird, asshole-boyfriend, really-disappointing

This review and others can be found on my blog, Bluebird Books.

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DNF at 45%, and on not finishing the book and still reviewing it, I only have one thing to say:

I regret nothing, though it makes me sad that it had to come to this.

Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is a hot mess of a book. It tries too hard to be cute, deep, and poetic at once, and only succeeds in being none of the above. Oh, I know some people think it’s adorable, but I’m not one of those people and will never be one of those people...more

15 likes · like · see review

Sep 04, 2011 ~Tina~ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own, tbr-booker-challenge, young-adult, contemporary, read-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 th...more

20 likes · like · see review

Jan 08, 2013 Lisa O. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ebook, ya-lit

Dash & Lily's Book of Dares was a ton of fun to read. I can see why it garnered so many prizes and awards. It's fantastically written by this quirky duet who is Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.

The story starts with Dash finding a red Moleskine diary hidden among other books on the shelves of a renowned NY bookshop, The Strand. On its pages, instructions for a dare by a mysterious girl. Dash, an incredibly bookish and snarly 16 years old with a love for the word fanciful, accepts the dare and...more

15 likes · like · see review

Dec 21, 2011 Stacey (prettybooks) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-after-university, read-in-my-twenties, young-adult-fiction

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...more

14 likes · like · see review

Dec 22, 2010 Arlene rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2010, ya-contemporary, christmas, young-adult

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...more 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(less)

20 likes · like · see review

Dec 26, 2012 aidanadia rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-of-2012, ya-contemporary-fiction

After an excruciating hiatus from reading, I decided to brighten up my uneventful Christmas with a Christmas-themed book. A quick read, Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares proved to be mildly entertaining but wholly underwhelming and completely forgettable.

The premise is rather curious and quaint: Dash, one of the eponymous heroes of this story, discovers a mysterious journal penned by Lily. Their mild-mannered dares, orchestrated with a scary efficiency and the help of acquiescent friends and family,...more After an excruciating hiatus from reading, I decided to brighten up my uneventful Christmas with a Christmas-themed book. A quick read, Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares proved to be mildly entertaining but wholly underwhelming and completely forgettable.

The premise is rather curious and quaint: Dash, one of the eponymous heroes of this story, discovers a mysterious journal penned by Lily. Their mild-mannered dares, orchestrated with a scary efficiency and the help of acquiescent friends and family, lead to an unorthodox relationship fraught with curiosity and yearning.

This book oscillated between being serious and light-hearted, a commendable combination but one that ultimately fell short. Both Dash and Lily had insightful comments to make at certain times, aspects that I quite enjoyed. These perceptive moments, shrouded in a thin layer of sadness, usually turned up when the characters were penning their hopes and desires in their journal. For example: “So that’s why it was my best Christmas. Because it was the last one when I really believed” introduces a level of sincerity to the story. Such a line seems to say that seriousness and sad realities are present even in the midst of otherwise cheerful and intriguing relationships.

However, Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares, blithe as it is, falls short due to its unappealing characters and their irritating natures. Dash proves to be nauseatingly pretentious, and Lily attempts to be eccentric but ends up as annoying, simply put. The level of realism that the narrative attempts to acquire disappears as we witness the conversations that Dash, for example, has with Great-Aunt Ida. Amusing as they are, I have yet to have heard a conversation actually fold out like that. For every amusing line there is (eg. “Green tea tastes like French kissing that cow after it’s done chewing all that grass”), there is an unrealistic and eye-roll-worthy “It’s not as if I’ve come to take her to the sock hop, or ask her to go double-spooning in some tapioca… my position on dillying and dallying, which right now is chaste with a chance for inveterate lust.” This line demonstrates wordsmithery but is completely unconvincing for the character and detracts from the book’s focus of realism. These occurrences are scattered quite frequently throughout the story, but quickly become irritating instead of endearing.

The overall impression that this story left on me was mundane. I found myself sifting through a fair few paragraphs where my interest dwindled. There were characters that I found to be completely unnecessary additions to the story – Priya, for one, could have been removed without causing much dismay. I found some of Lily’s actions to be borderline ridiculous and out of character, considering her supposed intelligence. Nonetheless, this was a quick read and an entertaining one at that. There were parts of the story that genuinely made me laugh, and parts that I found touching (as aforementioned). Other reviewers have deemed this story as “cute”, which may be an apt description. But in hindsight, it is certainly not without its flaws.

Bonus star because Dash introduced me to Mark Strand: “In a field / I am the absence / of field”
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6 likes · like · see review

Jan 12, 2013 Annabel ♥ rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: cover-love, adore, all-time-fav-s, five-stars, amazingness, in-my-shelf-completed, inspiring, lol, idea-is-genius, love-the-writing, review, speechless, why-didn-t-i-read-this-earlier, wish-i-were-in-this-book, ya-books-that-i-love

Where have you been all my life?

Love, love, love.
Why oh why did this book have to be only 260 pages long? If it had been 800 pages, I would've wanted it to be longer! This book is incredible and maybe just maybe one of the best I have ever read. AHHH! I just love this book to pieces. If I could, I would marry this book.

No question that the characters are my favorite part. I especially enjoyed reading from Lily's point of view, although I LOVED Dash, too. Sometimes books with alternating poin...more Where have you been all my life?

Love, love, love.
Why oh why did this book have to be only 260 pages long? If it had been 800 pages, I would've wanted it to be longer! This book is incredible and maybe just maybe one of the best I have ever read. AHHH! I just love this book to pieces. If I could, I would marry this book.

No question that the characters are my favorite part. I especially enjoyed reading from Lily's point of view, although I LOVED Dash, too. Sometimes books with alternating point of views annoy me because I'll like one character better than the other and just skim through the parts of the character that I don't like. But this one was SO different! I loved both point of views and I wanted this book to never ever ever ever ever end. Ever.

Lily, who is called Shrilly because of her ability to shriek shrilly when she's upset, is 16 years old. She loves Christmas. In fact, the first line of her POV is "I love Christmas." Understandably, right? I mean, who doesn't love Christmas??? Well Lily loves it just like any other rational human being (I'm getting to Dash in a minute). Lily was crazy and that's what I loved about her so much. She was so different from any other person in a book I've read about! She was a bit of a klutz and a bit all over the place, if you know what I mean, but I loved her for it. She just wanted to find that one right guy. And she wasn't having a fun Christmas. Her brother, Langston, is gay and spending all his time with his boyfriend. Her parents are away for Christmas (leaving Lily and her brother alone!!!!) celebrating their anniversary.

Dash is absolutely hilarious. He's a lovable nerd bookworm who I just fell in love with plain and simple. Every time someone sees him the word "Snarly" immediately comes to mind XD. Dash is the last person I'd guess to play along with the red moleskine notebook thing, but he does. He might be in love with Lily but he doesn't know since he hasn't met her yet.

How cool would that be? To pass along a red notebook, sharing your innermost secrets and your crazy thoughts to someone you've never even met??!!! It makes me want to try something like this, although unfortunately I do not live somewhere as exciting as New York City. I read this book right after Christmastime and let me tell you, I wished I could fast forward back in time ("fast forward back in time"... is that even an expression??) and relive Christmas all over again with this beautiful book that has become my new best friend. And I want to go to NYC next Christmas!

The plot of this book is absolutely incredible. It's so creative! I was hooked from page 1 and didn't put it down even when I was in school! I abandoned social life for the week and instead ate my lunch with the book hidden under my desk instead of socializing with friends. I fear that my love have books has made me become antisocial. But whatever. Books are my friends, so at least i'm being social with books, right?? XD

This book grabbed me like no other book has ever done. This book hugged me and never let me go, but not in a get-off-of-me type of way, in a YAY! I LOVE YOU SO MUCh! type of way. I freaking love this book and it is definitely on my list of all-time-favs. Better than favs!

Fun Fact: David Levithan, who wrote Dash's POV, is Maggie Stiefvater's editor! So you know that whatever he writes must be good. (less)

4 likes · like · see review

Dec 27, 2011 Maria rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: e-book, ya, 2011-favorites

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...more 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.(less)

16 likes · like · see review

Feb 07, 2011 kari rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, 5-star, ya

Where oh where were the intelligent cute snarly boys when I was a nerdish sixteen year old in need of a small adventure? Oh well.
These two authors develop a great story between them, with each having a great distinct voice and characterization. Yet the two halves fit together perfectly. There isn't too much description which I think adds to the overall effect of the story, we get to know Dash and Lily only through their words and thoughts.
The story is very believable as they go to various locat...more

11 likes · like · see review

Dec 30, 2012 Tina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, contemporary, gifts, ya, romance, 2012, favorites

Original post at One More Page

One day early this year (way before I met the Goodreads people) I was going around Fully Booked in Eastwood when I suddenly had this little fantasy. I wondered: what if, as I was looking for books to get, I meet a guy who has the same taste in books as I do? A straight, single guy, near my age, who reads for fun? And let's make him cute, too.

It was a little fantasy that my friends and I entertained often, and it almost became a topic of a story for my fiction blog (...more

8 likes · like · see review

Feb 27, 2011 Nomes rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, i-thought-i-would-love-this-but, alternating-m-f-pov, out-of-the-loop

2.5

I found it hard to engage in the story and wasn't really into it until the halfway mark (and even then I felt restless while reading it ~ as if waiting for some awesome to happen). Having said that ~ I think this will make a cute and fun movie (it has been optioned).

Also, I wanted some fun and wild dares while roaming around New York at Christmas and I expected a romance (a hip, funky one) and I guess it all just played out differently to what I imagined.

Some of the lines were cute/funny but...more

5 likes · like · see review

Nov 26, 2012 Belle rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: inner-teen, love-you-long-time, meet-cute, swoon-alert, jingle-bells

This was a really fun read, made doubly so by the fact that I read it during my trip to NYC and could picture, right down to the bookshelf, Dash and Lily on their travels. It totally made me wish I could have a book of dares with someone, though I don't know if I'd be game enough to follow through in real life. I loved Lily - loved that she was quirky but not in an off-putting way, loved that she loved to bake and read, loved that she loved her family, and loved that she LOVED Christmas. Dash to...more

4 likes · like · see review

Nov 11, 2012 ♥Rachel♥ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley-e-book, signed-by-author

Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares is a wacky romp through New York, starting in the famous book store, The Strand. It had me laughing hysterically in parts, and is laced with heartfelt introspection.

The story starts out with a red notebook and a dare. This notebook lands into the hands of Dash, the perfect person for this pursuit. It’s Christmas time and Dash is alone by his own design. He’s not a big fan of Christmas, and some of the assignments or dares are pure torture for him because of this. T...more Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares is a wacky romp through New York, starting in the famous book store, The Strand. It had me laughing hysterically in parts, and is laced with heartfelt introspection.

The story starts out with a red notebook and a dare. This notebook lands into the hands of Dash, the perfect person for this pursuit. It’s Christmas time and Dash is alone by his own design. He’s not a big fan of Christmas, and some of the assignments or dares are pure torture for him because of this. This is a testament to how invested he is in these dares and in finding out who’s at the bottom of them.

Lily is the author of the red notebook. She’s a little bizarre and doesn’t quite fit in, and doesn’t have any close girlfriends. Instead she’s close to her family. At the urging of her brother, she sets up the red notebook for the perfect person to find at the bookstore she loves. Lily has exactly the opposite view of Christmas from Dash, she absolutely loves everything about it, but this year she’s on her own since her parents went to Fiji and her grandfather went to Florida. Her brother is in town but he’s caught up in a new intense romance and can’t be bothered to entertain Lily, she’s bored and alone, so Dash’s counter dares couldn’t have happened at a more perfect time.

This story was co-written by David Levithan and Rachel Cohn and chapters were passed back and forth, each of them writing in response to the others writing. I recently met these two at an author signing and it was evident from their interaction they have an easy and fun relationship, and this definitely translates into the writing. Their banter back and forth in person was just as witty and hilarious as it is in the book. At one point while reading this, I was cracking up so hard I was crying. This scene may or may not have included: a large dog, angry mothers, baby catching, a crimson alert, and the police. Wacky, slap-stick humor at its best!

For those of you like me who require romance in a story, fear not! These two, in spite of their differences, seem to connect so well without even meeting each other at first. I guess we can thank Rachel Cohn for the romance, because she’s the one who pushed for a romantic and happy ending that’ll put a smile on your face. David was going to be so cruel!!

A copy was provided by Mira Ink through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
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19 likes · like · see review

Feb 24, 2013 ♥ Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-na, fluffy

So, I’ve never read any David Levithan, or Rachel Cohn novels before, although I’ve heard of their previously highly acclaimed works before; I’ve watched Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist way back when, but I never really liked it. Maybe I should read the book. Anyway.

So why did I choose to read this book now? Well, just read the description!! How could I resist reading about serendipitous love in NYC, during the holidays?!? Oh, and communicating via red, moleskin journal? Sounds too unique,...more

4 likes · like · see review

Nov 29, 2010 Heather rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, ya

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares is a cute, quick and pleasing enough of a read. It definitely evoked holiday merriment and these two writers swapped POV's very well. I liked both Dash and Lily as characters, though I enjoyed the former much more than the later. Levithan is certainly the more talented writer in this duo. Nonetheless, neither of these characters would ever pass for being 16. I don't know any teenagers that speak or act this way. I don't even know many adults who speak or act this wa...more

7 likes · like · see review

Jan 14, 2012 Mafi rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: eng, 2012, ebook, favorites

Ahh they did it again! Rachel Cohn e David Leviathan são maravilhosos! eu já tinha adorado o Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist e este Dash & Lily's Book of Dares não fica atrás (até acho que gostei mais deste último)

O livro é tão fofinho, as personagens são carismáticas, opostas em si mas complementam-se! É um livro delicioso para ler-se naqueles dias em que o cérebro não exige muito. :)

Gostei bastante :D

3 likes · like · see review

Mar 27, 2011 Thomas rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-for-high-school-book-club

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 acti...more

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Mar 12, 2011 Susane Colasanti rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"I was attempting to write the story of my life. It wasn't so much about plot. It was much more about character." - Dash

10 likes · like · see review

Dec 25, 2012 Priscilla rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Check out my video review: http://www.youtube.com/user/thereadab...

6 likes · like · see review

Dec 21, 2012 Sam Marchello rated it 5 of 5 stars

4.5, but rounding it to 5 because it made me feel fluffy and good.

Sometimes there are books that make you think about the true meaning of friendship and love. Sometimes we find ourselves feeling so isolated in the world that one day we discover a red notebook that keeps us feeling like we are truly not alone. Dash and Lily's Book of Dares is a novel that warms the heart on a cold winter's night.

As I am writing this review it is four days until Christmas Day. This book was the perfect holiday rea...more 4.5, but rounding it to 5 because it made me feel fluffy and good.

Sometimes there are books that make you think about the true meaning of friendship and love. Sometimes we find ourselves feeling so isolated in the world that one day we discover a red notebook that keeps us feeling like we are truly not alone. Dash and Lily's Book of Dares is a novel that warms the heart on a cold winter's night.

As I am writing this review it is four days until Christmas Day. This book was the perfect holiday read in that, not only did it get me into the holiday spirit, but I felt as though I was whisked away to a New York City full of life and colour. As a dual-narrative novel, there's always the risk of the two voices never syncing together, but I feel like Leviathan and Cohn do an awesome job of breathing in life to Dash and Lily respectively. Their voices were so distinctive and clear, and I was able to vividly picture them in my head as I was reading along.

Overall, I found while I connected with Dash quite a bit, it was Lily's voice that was surprisingly stronger for me. Perhaps it's because I know someone with the exact same voice and mannerism that she seems so crystal clear to me. Truth be told, both characters have amazing strengths and weakness, and were flawed in all the right ways. Both narrators felt so believable, something that fr me is often missing in a lot of YA fiction. Even some of the more humorous situations (Poor Dash and his Santa experience!) are handled with so much attention and care. This is a fluffy book with the goal to make you feel good about living, even despite hardships.

The romance in Dash & Lily is very sweet and tender. You're rooting for them all the way, but you find yourself impressed by how they view the world and is love something they even believe in. One thing that helps this romance along is the supporting cast, who lend their hands frequently during the dares, or just to provide some insight. In particular, I was very fond of Grandpa, if only because I really felt sorry for the guy. I loved Boomer's desire to easy the two together, and equally loved Langston's nonsense about how Lily needs to grow-up. I felt like I connected with all of these people, while I didn't always love how they handled situations, it was still wonderful to feel connected to them.

Finally, I want to talk about the setting. I've had a dream since I was a little girl to visit New York City during Christmas time. The only time I've ever been to NYC was when I was in the eleventh grade and it was a school trip in early May. A lot of my favourite holiday movies take place in this magical city, so this book did an amazing job of giving me the exact feelings I wanted over the holidays, despite me not physically being there. Some day, I'm sure it will happen, but for now I'll have to continue looking at Christmas in NYC through the eyes of Dash & Lily.

I don't normally toss out four-point-fives or fives to books mostly because I have such a critical eye, but this book, despite some of minor flaws, had me reading everything so carefully. It forced me as a reader to be a bit more methodical, and finally, I loved the story so much that I just enjoyed reading it bits at a time to transport me to this wonderful, hidden little place. Not many books have the power to force me to read slow and devour the words line for line, but this book managed to do it with ease.(less)

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Jan 10, 2013 Nenia Campbell rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: x-2010s, ya-baby-ya, netgalley, did-not-finish-or-skimmed

You can read more reviews at my blog, The Armchair Librarian!

One thing I credit this book with is giving me the perfect word to describe unfriendly hipsters: snarly.

Apart from that, though, it was a bust.

The title is great, and the premise is, too. I love the idea of two teenagers meeting in a bookstore through a notebook, and going on adventures that bring them closer and closer together. It's like a scavenger hunt, and the prize is your soulmate.

I think my problem with Dash & Lily is, epon...more

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Oct 15, 2012 Danielle rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-fiction, ya-fiction

Read This Review & More Like It At Ageless Pages Reviews

3.5 Stars.

If Cohn and Levithan’s first collaboration, Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, was a fantasy of teenagers in love, Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is a full on fairytale, complete with Cinderella’s lost shoe. Whether or not you’ll appreciate this book depends on a number of factors. I’ve provided a small graphic to help you decide:

As a former high school nerd with a superiority complex, (it’s not that I lacked social skill...more

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Sep 13, 2012 Beth Knight rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: own-it, ya

"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." I was going to save this book for Christmastime (the time during which this book takes place) but I was going through a bad case of "book block" and was making frequent trips to my basement "library" to scan my books and watching book videos on YouTube, trying to get so...more

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Oct 14, 2012 Jessica (Goldenfurpro) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012, released-in-2010, actually-semi-realistic, pov-multiple, stand-alones, school-year-2012-2013, hall-of-awesome-4-stars-or-more, books-that-might-be-made-into-movie

WARNING: The following "review" will make no sense whatsoever. PROCEED WITH CAUTION!

As you could probably tell by the cover (or maybe the synopsis) this book takes place around Christmas time. This book was just so awesome that I completely thought that is was Christmas time (as in winter break, since it would have been obvious that it wasn't Christmas. Even though there are Christmas trees in my living room...in October). But the point is, I THOUGHT IT WAS CHRISTMAS TIME!! And I forgot it was a...more

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Jun 23, 2012 Kaede rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-own, could-have-been-better, contemporary, expected-more, fluffy-fun, the-shelf-of-okays

Eh. It was cute. But really, that's about all it was. If your looking for a sweet and simple read, Dash Lily's Book of Dares is, without a doubt, the book for you. If not, I'd suggest trying something else.

I don't know why but, I expected something more from David Levithan and Rachel Cohn. Because you know, it's so not right to have certain expectations for an author that also works as an editor. Stupid, stupid me. I should have learned my lesson long ago.

But maybe I'm being a bit too harsh. Th...more

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Jan 28, 2012 Taneika (Flipping Through The Pages...) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-own, cover-love, faves, literary-crushes

More of my reviews can be found at Flipping Through the Pages!

What can I say about this? Oh, I have such a hard time writing reviews for contemporary books (Brodie, I know what you're going to say, but I won't say this review is dodgy... for your sake), I just don't find them as easy to review as fantasy or paranormal because not only have I only just started reading contemporary, but most of the time, I feel I can seriously relate in one way or the other.

A snarly boy named Dash finds a red mole...more

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Dec 22, 2011 Tiernan rated it 5 of 5 stars

What a fantastic read! Here's what I thought:
1. It didn't feel short at all. There's so much that happens within these 260 pages.
2. The characters are amazing. Great voices and personalities; very relatable, I saw myself in both Dash and Lily.
3. It was an interesting storyline, with many sub-plots happening along with the main idea.
4. A bit slow at times. Full pages of no dialogue, just descriptions of things. Some of these things readers may know about, some they may not. For the times I had no...more

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Dec 19, 2011 Emma rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: post-uni, christmas-books, favorites

Dash just isn’t a Christmas person. This year, he’s managed to take advantage of his parents’ divorce by telling each of them he’s spending the holidays with the other, so he can be alone. Among the bookshelves of the Strand in New York, Dash finds a red moleskine notebook challenging him to a series of dares. Lily, the owner of the notebook, loves everything Christmas and even organized her own choir group. The notebook was her brother’s idea, in efforts to find her the perfect guy. As Dash and...more Dash just isn’t a Christmas person. This year, he’s managed to take advantage of his parents’ divorce by telling each of them he’s spending the holidays with the other, so he can be alone. Among the bookshelves of the Strand in New York, Dash finds a red moleskine notebook challenging him to a series of dares. Lily, the owner of the notebook, loves everything Christmas and even organized her own choir group. The notebook was her brother’s idea, in efforts to find her the perfect guy. As Dash and Lily get to know each other through writing in the notebook, they embark on an adventure throughout Manhattan. Although there is undeniably a special magic between the two of them on paper, what will happen when they actually meet? Is meeting worth the risk, or should they keep things on the page?

I love Christmas so much and there doesn’t seem to be enough YA books about the winter holidays. Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares is a YA Christmas book, and that was what lead me to picking it up. This is Rachel Cohn and David Levithan’s third book together. I loved Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist but wasn’t so keen on Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List. All of their three books share a New York setting and feature alternating narrators. I wasn’t sure what to expect with Dash and Lily, since Naomi and Ely was a let down for me. At first, I couldn’t stand Dash’s pretentious narration. However, the interesting concept kept me reading. I’m not sure if I got used to Dash’s snobbery or if it was toned down later, but he stopped bothering me as I kept reading. Midway through, I thought Dash was alright, and while Lily would be perfect for him, I didn’t think he’d be perfect for her. By the end, I could look past his snarly demeanor and love him for his loyalty. I liked Lily from the start, but had this nagging feeling that she was exactly like someone I used to know. Someone who also likes Salinger, singing Christmas carols and wearing beat up chucks and thick black glasses. Someone who acts just like her…. Then it hit me: Lily reminds me of me at sixteen. For this reason, I really took to her and loved the chapters from her perspective. The story was fun and original. While Lily originally leaves the notebook beside a copy of Franny and Zooey with a scavenger hunt for the finder, later Dash and Lily pass the notebook back and forth while giving clues to where the other person should leave it. Their dares take them throughout New York City, and I thought the writers fully utilized an amazing setting. It made me want to visit New York at Christmas (and the Strand!) The plot may not sound that interesting, but the way it was carried out was perfect. There were times when I actually laughed out loud (code crimson) and there were so many adorable parts. This book captured the magic of Christmas and made me forget that it was still fall when I read it.

Christmas festiveness? Check. Great setting? Check. An entertaining and engaging plot? Check. Adventure, fun characters and some mild flirtation through a notebook? Check, check, check. Despite a few minor annoyances in the beginning, I loved this book. Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares was an amazing holiday read that left me smiling.

4.5/5(less)

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Young Adult Conte...: May 2013	16	51	May 19, 2013 06:04pm
scavenger hunt element	3	23	Apr 24, 2013 08:28pm
YA Buddy Readers'...: DASH & LILY'S BOOK OF DARES by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan / Start date: 02/08/13	24	20	Feb 27, 2013 05:23pm
Epistolary Bookmarks: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares	2	1	Feb 09, 2013 08:25am
The Contemporary,...: Dash and Lily's Book of Dares discussion (1st-14th)	6	11	Jan 03, 2013 02:22pm
The YA Book Club: Dash and Lily's Book of Dares- December 2012	10	65	Dec 31, 2012 04:25pm

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About Rachel Cohn

Rachel 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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“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.” — 613 people liked it

“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.” — 428 people liked it

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