YA author Morgan Matson on Take Me Home Tonight and a modern day digital nightmare

Bestselling YA author Morgan Matson’s latest book hit shelves this week. Take Me Home Tonight is described as a mix of Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, an exciting, fun-filled romp through the streets of the city that never sleeps. With one small problem: They have to do it all without their phones.

Truly, in the year 2021, an unthinkable nightmare, right? How would we summon Ubers, find restaurants, figure out where we’re going in a strange city, document every unmissable minute on social media?

Well, it turns out that’s not the only problem that best friends Kat and Stevie will have to navigate during a secret night out in New York City. (There’s also family drama, dog sitting, rude cab drivers, and bad theater.) But it is one of the biggest challenges they’ll face – since they, like everyone else, have come to rely on these devices.

The official synopsis for Take Me Home Tonight describes the story as follows:

"Kat and Stevie—best friends, theater kids, polar opposites—have snuck away from the suburbs to spend a night in New York City. They have it all planned out. They’ll see a play, eat at the city’s hottest restaurant, and have the best. Night. Ever. What could go wrong? Well. Kind of a lot? They’re barely off the train before they’re dealing with destroyed phones, family drama, and unexpected Pomeranians. Over the next few hours, they’ll have to grapple with old flames, terrible theater, and unhelpful cab drivers. But there are also cute boys to kiss, parties to crash, dry cleaning to deliver (don’t ask), and the world’s best museum to explore. Over the course of a wild night in the city that never sleeps, both Kat and Stevie will get a wake-up call about their friendship, their choices…and finally discover what they really want for their future. That is, assuming they can make it to Grand Central before the clock strikes midnight."

Whether the girls make it – or what kind of adventures they get into along the way, is something you’ll have to read the book to find out.

But Matson herself graciously offered to not only detail how we can survive a similar disaster – mostly by remembering what we liked about life before we were so connected all the time. (Bonus: There are some sneak peek tidbits about Take Me Home Tonight in here as well.)