Review: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

"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."

This book.

This. Book.

I honestly don't really have words to describe my admiration for this book, I really don't. I've heard about this book on tumblr and on blogs, and when I went to my local library (which doesn't have the best selection), I was honestly surprised to see this book on the shelf, my mom even asking me why I was reading an LGBTQ book and I just gave her the look. But I was so, so glad I decided to check it out.

One of my absolute favorite things about this book was the writing. Sáenz manages to capture you in within the first page, within the first sentence.

"One summer night I fell asleep, hoping the world would be different when I woke."

The book is in the POV of Aristotle, known throughout the book as Ari. It cover's Ari's sophomore year through senior year of high school, as he struggles with his identity, not only his personal identity, as a Mexican-American, but also his sexual identity.  Ari befriends Dante when he's fifteen, and trying to learn how to swim, and as the book unravels, Dante's sexual orientation becomes rather clear, where Ari is possibly even more confused when Dante comes out to him.

The characterization of Ari and Dante, some of which I mentioned above, is also one of the main elements about the book that I loved. The book is wonderful, because the characters are believable. The time period, the boy's ethnicities, even the struggles they face at home, help create wonderful, well rounded characters that give the book the realness that causes people to cry when they reach the end (don't worry, they were happy tears).

Five out of five stars. Everyone needs to read this book.