Naomi and Ely are best friends. Naomi loves and is in love with Ely, and Ely loves Naomi, but prefers to be in love with boys. So they create their “No Kiss List” of people neither of them is allowed to kiss. And this works fine – until Bruce. Bruce is Naomi’s boyfriend, so there’s no reason to put him on the List. But Ely kissed Bruce even though he is boring. The result: a rift of universal proportions and the potential end of “Naomi and Ely: the institution.” Can these best friends come back together again?
I wanted to read this one because it was written by the same people who wrote Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. I didn’t read that book, but I watched and loved that movie.
Naomi and Ely are bff. Big time. They live across the hall from each other, they grew up together, and even the fact that Naomi’s dad slept with Ely’s mom didn’t break up their friendship. But when Ely kisses Naomi’s boyfriend Bruce, Naomi has to face the fact that Naomi doesn’t love her that way and she blows up at him. Feeling guilty and not really understanding why Naomi freaked out, Ely gets mad too – and so epic meltdown begins. Naomi creates a list of rules, locations where they cannot be in the same space at the same time. The building tenants are divided in their loyalties and more than a few people are happy about the split (namely guys who love Naomi).
This book was fun! It’s told from a few different perspectives. Naomi and Ely’s of course. Then there’s Gabriel, the hot new doorman (who was #2 on the no kiss list), Bruce the First and Bruce the Second. Bruce the Second is the one Ely kissed. Bruce the First is in love with Naomi and was super jealous of Ely. Then there’s Robin and Robin. Robin guy and Robin girl. All these people have their perspective on what’s going on between Naomi and Ely.
I loved how this book was about love between friends. Yeah we get Naomi and Ely falling for other people romantically, but at the core of this book, was the love you have for your friends. And no one knows you better than your best friend, no one knows your more vulnerable weak spots. No one can hurt you more.
I liked this one. I wanted to be everyone’s friend. And all the cool stuff about New York – you feel like you’re right there with these guys. Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List gets a B from me.
Book cover and blurb credit: http://barnesandnoble.com