Review: Dash and Lily's Book of Dares

Title/Author:  Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

Published: 2010, Knopf Books for Young Readers

Source: Purchased myself at B&N

Rating:  5 stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

“I’ve left some clues for you. If you want them, turn the page. If you don’t, put the book back on the shelf, please.” 

So begins the latest whirlwind romance from the New York Times bestselling authors of Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist. Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? Or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions? 

Review:

After reading this book I am so tempted to get a notebook, scribble down a riddle and leave it in a bookstore next to a favorite book and cross my fingers that a cute (intelligent) guy comes along, finds the notebook and plays along.

I loved the story.  Dash, while cynical, is the male equivalent of Jessica Darling.  Seriously, I think they’d be best friends.  He always has some witty remark.  Lily unintentionally isolates herself from people and just wants a friend.  She’s the captain and star athlete of her school’s soccer team yet doesn’t hang out with any of her teammates.  

Dash and Lily’s relationship kind of reminded me of my bookish community friends.  I’ve never met any of you, yet I kind of have an idea in my head what you all look like and sound like (and I don’t mean this is a creepy way!).  Then when I watch a vlog it throws me off a little.  Dash and Lily each had an idea of what the other one was like.

What I loved about the book:

• I laughed over the crimson alert and that entire ordeal.  Who knew throwing snowballs could be so dangerous?
• Snarly.  To me describing someone as snarly means their hair is full of knots and desperately needs to be brushed.
• I loved all of the dares and following Dash and Lily through New York City at Christmastime.
• Dashiell.  What a great name.
• Cover love.  Love love love the heart-shaped snowflakes on the cover.

After writing this up I noticed I clearly favor Dash over Lily.  Even though Lily is also a main character more things about Dash stick out in my mind.

I highly recommend this book!  It’s set during the holidays and its part of the story, but its not really a Christmas-y book.  So if you were looking for a sappy or sugar-sweet read for the holiday season then this probably isn’t the book for you.

Review: Jumpstart the World

 

Title:  Jumpstart the World

Author:  Catherine Ryan Hyde

Published:  Knopf, October 2010

How I Got It:  Purchased for my nook

Rating: 5 stars

Thoughts:

Jumpstart the World by Catherine Ryan Hyde is fantastic read.  The book isn’t even 200 pages long but it is filled with so much emotion.  You’ll feel happy, sad, grateful, encouraged, guilty, depressed but also inspired and ready the change the world.  Ultimately, I think this book is about acceptance and tolerance. 

Sixteen-year old Elle has just moved into her very first apartment, her only companion is the cat she just got from a shelter (she picked the least friendly cat out of the bunch).  Her mother’s new boyfriend doesn’t like teenagers so instead of kicking him to the curb Elle gets kicked out.  Her mother pays for the apartment (which is on the other side of town) and checks in every so often.

The only neighbors Elle gets to know are Frank and his girlfriend, Molly.  They live in the apartment next to Elle and even share a fire escape.  Elle takes an instant liking to Frank.  She develops a crush on him and is devastated when she unexpectedly finds out that Frank is transgender.  He’s currently in the process of going from a female to a male.  Needless to say it came as quite a shock to Elle.  The last half of the book is about Elle dealing with the aftermath of finding out about Frank.  She's not really sure what to think about it or how to react to it.

*One random fact about Elle:  Do not steal a cab from her, especially if she is upset about something.

Lately I've been trying to write down my favorite quotes from books.  These are my four favorite quotes from Jumpstart the World:

"Words are important...words are the tools we use for making peace with the world" - Chapter 3

“You’re supposed to make mistakes.  You’re just starting out.  Mistakes are a good thing.  They mean you were brave enough to try something hard” – Chapter 6

“Sometimes you have to jumpstart the world just to get it to be what even the world admits it should be” – Chapter 12

“I decided that not talking is like a litmus test for a real friend.  You can just sit there and be.  Not always be filling up the air with words” – Chapter 14

I loved this book.  I definitely think it is a must read for everyone.  It’s a great story about learning to accept others even if they're different.  Plus there are funny chapter titles like, “The Heartbreak of Too Many Guys Named Bob” and “Mascara, and Other Things That Run”.  Also, how is it that I have not read any of Catherine Ryan Hyde’s other books before?


On Hyde's website she has Five Ways To Jumpstart The World listed.  Please go take a look at them. She has some great ideas listed.

*This review is also posted over at The Broke and The Bookish

Review: Twenty Boy Summer

Title:  Twenty Boy Summer

Author:  Sarah Ockler

Published:  Little, Brown and Company, 2009

How I Got It:  Public Library

Rating:  5 stars

Summary:  

"Don't worry, Anna. I'll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it."
"Okay."
"Promise me? Promise you won't say anything?"
"Don't worry." I laughed. "It's our secret, right?"

According to her best friend Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy every day, there's a pretty good chance Anna will find her first summer romance. Anna lightheartedly agrees to the game, but there's something she hasn't told Frankie---she's already had that kind of romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago.

Beautifully written and emotionally honest, this is a debut novel that explores what it truly means to love someone and what it means to grieve, and ultimately, how to make the most of every single moment this world has to offer (from Goodreads).

Review:

Let me start off by saying that I probably wouldn’t have picked up this book if it hadn’t been for all of the controversy over banning it in September (speak loudly).  So I want to thank the horrible person who wants to ban this book from their local school system (don’t even want to mention their name!) and the #Speak Loudly campaign for putting this book on my radar.  I’m so glad you gave this book attention.  I absolutely adored it.

Twenty Boy Summer tells the story of Anna and Frankie.  The majority of the book takes place one year after a tragic accident:  a car accident claimed the life of Matt, Frankie’s older brother and he was also best friends with Anna and Frankie.  Even though it was Frankie’s brother who died, Matt was also Anna’s best friend (and the first boy she was in love with).  It didn’t seem like Anna was given a chance to grieve.  Everyone was always worried about Frankie and they expected Anna to be able to take care of her.  To cope, Anna writes in her journal, it was a birthday present from Matt, and she keeps a picture of the two of them on the first page.  Sometimes she even addresses the journal entries to Matt, telling him how his sister is not dealing with the loss well or how she's afraid she's going to forget him.

I loved this story because it seemed so real.  Although they were consumed by grief, Anna and Frankie were typical teenage girls.  Yes, this includes lying to their parents, sneaking out, underage drinking, wearing too much makeup and clothes their parents wouldn’t approve of, spending an hour in front of a mirror getting ready to go out, and flirting with boys.  While some people (I’m talking about you icky person who shall remain nameless) think that books like this will give teenagers the idea to lie to their parents (trust me, they already do this sometimes), they learn these things from each other- not the books they read.  

  

The cover.  I love it. The heart is made out of blue sea glass with a single piece of red sea glass.  Once you read the book you’ll understand how it ties is with the story so well.  Also, Ockler's descriptions of the ocean were amazing.  I never think about how the salt water feels like you've eaten too many potato chips or how nice it feels to dig your feet into the cool sand.  I grew up ten minutes from the beach so it's also strange (for me) to hear someone say they're never seen the ocean.  

Twenty Boy Summer is Sarah Ockler’s debut book.  I’ll definitely be picking up her second novel when it comes out in December. 

Review: The Travel Book

Title: The Travel Book: A Journey Through Every Country In The World
Author: Roz Hopkins, Laetitia Clapton (Editor), Janet Austin (Editor)
Published: Lonely Planet, 2005
Where I Got It: Christmas present a few years ago
Why I Read It: I love travel books!
Rating: 5 stars

Review:

This is one of my favorite books to look through. Whenever the travel bug bites I either watch one of Samantha Brown's shows on the Travel Channel or I pick this book up and the travel bug (temporarily) goes away. As much as I love to travel and see new places my bank account does not always agree! Actually, it rarely agrees! But this book helps keep me sane!

This book is amazing. Seriously. Lonely Planet takes you on an adventure, an adventure that goes through 230 countries (in alphabetical order). Each country gets two pages in the book. One page is just pictures, and the other is facts about the country. This book is informative, but please don't read this if you want to learn every little thing about Peru or what hostels to stay in when you travel to France. The Travel Book just gives a general overview (with gorgeous pictures). This is a great resource to be able to get a sense of all of the countries in the world.

One each country's page it follows the same format: There is a small blurb about the country followed by: The best time to visit, Essential experiences (things you must do!), Getting under the skin (what to read, listen to, eat and drink to get a better feel of the country), In a word (a word of phrase that sums up the country/language), Trademarks, Surprises, and there is always a small map of the country at the end of the page. Plus the country's capital, population, and official language are also given.

This book may be a little outdated in some aspects, as it was published five years ago but it is still a fantastic read. You can travel the whole world just by lounging on the couch. I think it makes a great coffee table book.

Where to first? Your journey awaits...