Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares is the third book that authors Rachel Cohn and David Levithan have teamed up for after Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist and Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List. Dash & Lily is written in the same style as the previous two.  It’s written in a first person style with each of the two main characters alternating chapters (and the authors as well).  It’s also set in the real present day NYC and based around a group of real New Yorkers.  There’s a couple of references to the other 2 books thrown in there too for the sharp eyed but this isn’t a sequel of any sort.

I fell in love with this duo after I read Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (a movie I also love).  That book had a really interesting style about it that managed to be truthful and realistic about both love, lust, being a teenager, and New York City.  New York City is important in these works.  The authors use the city not as some generic backdrop, but as a very specific way of having the characters interact with the world and they use real places both famous and not to tell the story.  As a New Yorker I’m really impressed by just how well they capture aspects of the city.

The story here kicks off when Dash, a 16 year old boy and product of a broken home, finds a mysterious red notebook in The Strand (a famous bookstore) that leads him first on a scavenger hunt around the store and then later is used as the main communication tool with Lily.  Lily is the one who wrote the first bit in the notebook (sorta) and she starts writing back to Dash through the notebook and the two keep having each other go through various challenges in Christmastime NY, which Lily loves and Dash does not.  Through these entries they learn little bits about each other and fall more for the idea of one another they come up with in their minds.

I do really want to discuss this book on it’s own but it’s really hard to separate it out from the other 2 books.  Both authors are acclaimed young adult authors on their own, but these 3 books are so similar it’s almost hard to not make comparisons.  I’ll just say that if you enjoyed either or both of their previous books then pick this up immediately.

I like the way this is written, with the characters having adult voices and ideas but yet still being naive and not knowing so much about the world.  It’s probably appropriate for an older teenager, but adults will probably get the most enjoyment out of this.  There’s a blend of reality and the unreal that is also really well done here.  Overall I didn’t have a single moment of not enjoying this and I’d recommend picking it up if you like tales of teenagers trying to find themselves.  It’s funny, sad, and well done.

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