Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Goodreads Synopsis:

A lyrical novel about family and friendship from critically acclaimed author Benjamin Alire Sáenz.

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship--the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

My Review:

This story was very poetic, had a great moral, and touched on some rather sensitive subjects. I think this was a lovely coming-of-age story that all youth should read. They will learn about being true to oneself, that things will get better, confusion or not understanding yourself is common, about respect, tolerance, and love.

At first I thought Ari was too hard on himself, but as I got to know his character, I realized he was just learning about himself. As the story progressed, he changed and grew into a stronger person, mentally and physically. It was like watching a flower bloom.

Dante was always so straight forward. He was quirky and funny, and very sure of himself. He wore his heart on his sleeve, and it made him a stronger person for it. I liked him, and his relationship with all the supporting characters.

The relationship between Ari and Dante was very natural, and just right off seemed to work. I felt the relationship went through some rough waters, much like any friendship, in a very believable way. It was beautiful to behold.

My only concern was some of the dialog. Sometimes it felt forced. The best way to describe this is to compare it to 2 Broke Girls. Their dialog seems written and preplanned rather then going with the flow, which makes this show tough to watch, and in turn made this story sometimes a little difficult to get through.

All in all, I think Benjamin Alire Saenz did a great job capturing the late 1980's "Tex-Mex" scene, and the then faux-pas issue of homosexuality. If you've ever considered reading this, please do, I doubt you'll regret it.

Favorite Quotes:

“I didn't understand how you could live in a mean world and not have any of that meanness rub off on you. How could a guy live without meanness?”

“Words were different when they lived inside of you.”

“It was good to laugh. I wanted to laugh and laugh and laugh until I laughed myself into becoming someone else.”

“I got to thinking that poems were like people. Some people you got right off the bat. Some people you just didn't get--and never would get.”

“Smiles are like that. They come and go.”

“Words could be like food - they felt like something in your mouth. They tasted like something.”

“We all fight our own private wars.”

“One of the secrets of the universe was that our instincts were sometimes stronger than our minds.”

“I don't always have to understand the people I love.”

“Scars. A sign that you had been hurt. A sign that you had healed.”

Read from November 02 to 04, 2015

Top 5 Genres*: Realistic Fiction, Young Adult, GLBT, Contemporary, Romance
*According to Goodreads
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★★★★★ - I absolutely loved it
★★★★ - Good book and would recommend
★★★ - Decent book, but wasn't spectacular
★★ - Not good, but was able to finish it
★ - Did not finish (DNF) and I don't usually rate a book I haven't finished (just to be fair to the author)

View all my reviews