Tolog Review: Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist
by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
reviewed by Nancy Zhao 

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist is a novel written by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. The second I finished reading the first page of the book I thought this was the most horrible book I have ever read. I hated the setting, the words, the characters and almost everything about the book.

The complicated love story all started when Nick asked Norah to be his ‘girlfriend’ for five minutes. Nick is trying to avoid his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend he just spotted after his band performance. After the short five-minute relationship, they went on an all-nighter around New York. They snuck in private concerts and parties, shared their deepest secrets and created an expressive connection. Soon, they got to know each other more and Nick found out that Norah is actually surprisingly interesting person instead of this ordinary schoolgirl. Even though their personalities are entirely the opposite, they still worked really well with each other. Nick, an extremely sensitive musician and just cannot get over his past relationship and Norah, a person who goes by all the rules but tough private-school girl.

Through out the story, they had happy times and tough times. During the difficult times, they were there for each other and went through it together. Soon I understood the book was not just a vague love story but two people could connect with each other. They related with their passion in music and finding humor in everything. In the end, I would change my first impression of this book but I still would not say this is the best book. This is a book that many of us can relate to, to the random concerns on first dates and butterflies building up in our stomachs. This book is not the typical love story where they just fall in love, I think that this book is all about the process of them noticing that they are falling in deeper and deeper. This book is written in a very strong narrative with each chapter of someone else’s point of view. I enjoyed this book because I though it was helpful for the reader to know what each of the characters are thinking.