Monday, December 06, 2010

Holiday reading list- Dash and Lily's Book of Dares

One of my holiday traditions is to read a holiday book every year.
Since I work in theater I'm surrounded by the holidays from mid November to New Year's Eve. I'm usually stitching like the wind making pajama pants for my sisters, niece and select friends. My holiday book is my own little tradition.
I was super excited about this year's holiday book. Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.
Rachel Cohn is one of my favorite authors and I love the collaborations she does with David Levithan.
The book takes place in New York City during the Christmas holidays. Dash finds a red moleskin notebook in a bookstore with clues and dares. Lily and Dash trade the notebook back and forth during the holidays.
I loved the character of Lily. If there is a person who is more geeked about the whole Christmas thing than I am it is Lily. She is known in her caroling group at "third verse Lily". This year Lily's family is away and she is upset. Her brother starts this adventure for her by giving her the idea for the notebook and helping with the first clues. Lily breaks out of her shell and follows the clues and dares left for her by Dash.
Dash is smart, wordy, and enjoys his alone time. He actually told each of his divorced parents that he was spending the holidays at the other parents house so he could be alone. He seems more cynical of the holidays but accepts Lily's dares and clues as well.
The book is a love story and reminded me a little of the play She Loves Me or the movie You've Got Mail. The idea of falling in love with a person through words and wondering if that person will meet up to expectations. I love the way the words are exchanged through a red moleskin notebook.
I enjoyed this book and think it is a great read for any time of the year. The notebook, the adventures the characters go on and the love story can be enjoyed all year round.

What about you. What are you currently reading? Do you have any books or movies that are part of your holiday traditions?

4 comments:

Angela said...

I'm looking forward to the next Carrie Jones novel, which is supposed to come out on the 14th of December.

Emy Shin said...

I'm intrigued by DASH & LILY, and have been meaning to read this. Knowing that it's a holiday read makes me want to read it even more for this holiday. It sounds amazing!

Anonymous said...

oh i like that tradition! i always reread the "yes virginia there is a santa clause" article, but would love to get into the classic holiday books. xoxox

Kari said...

This book sounds great! And, as much as I hate to admit it, I never even thought of having a holiday reading tradition...I'm definitely going to give this book a try, though! Thanks for the recommendation :)