Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn

Naomi's narration is peppered with tiny icons, which look trendy but can be hard for readers to decipher. Readers will laugh at the fun turns of phrase (Ely accuses Naomi of being “a drama queen before we were old enough to go to Dairy Queen” and appreciate the clever duplication of characters (there are two Robins and two Bruces) which plays into the book's ideas about soul mates, or lack thereof. These characters do not add much-with the exception of a vulnerable doorman who tries to connect with Naomi.

Part of the problem may be that the authors rotate through the perspectives of numerous characters, including Ely's new boyfriend (Naomi's ex) and a fawning girl from Schenectady who seems to exist mainly to reinforce how cool Naomi is. But unlike Nick and Norah, Naomi and Ely come across as thoughtless and self-absorbed.

see Reprints, below) once again create characters with attitude and fill their book with wordplay and witty conceits. Cohn and Levithan ( Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist But after Ely, who is gay, kisses Naomi's boyfriend and lies about it, she stops speaking to him, even creating rules for avoiding each other she does not care so much about her boyfriend, but finally understands Ely “will never love me the way I love” him. Readers will be impressed that the authors offer up some complex lessons instead of a pat reconciliation.Longtime best friends Naomi and Ely live in the same Greenwich Village apartment building with their mothers while attending New York University. They ultimately do learn some valuable lessons, though: Naomi learns that she needs to stop living in a fantasy world, and Ely realizes that real relationships - romantic and not - require work. Instead, they just seem mean: They use people, are rude to them, and can even be cruel to one another. Maybe if the authors had just stuck to Naomi and Ely, we would have learned to like them better. Part of the problem may be that there are so many different narrators in this book, from a sensitive doorman to the boy who first causes the fight between the two protagonists. But as the fight between the two protagonists intensifies, readers will begin to wonder if they couldn't redirect their angst into something a bit less shallow. Naomi even cleverly peppers her narration with cute little icons. Readers may be initially drawn to Naomi and Ely because they are so cool: They are beautiful, dress funky, and their conversations are full of fun turns, swear words, and energy - and they are living in the same cool neighborhood in cool New York City, going to cool New York University. This is just an average book, and while there are great moments, readers may get bored before they get there.

Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List by Rachel Cohn