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

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Genre: YA Realistic Fiction

Blurb (on back of book): Dante can swim. Ari can't. Dante is articulate and self-assured. Ari has a hard time with words and suffers from self-doubt. Dante gets lost in poetry and art. Ari gets lost in thoughts of his older brother who is in prison. Dante is fair skinned. Ari's features are much darker. It seems that a boy like Dante, with his open and unique perspective on life, would be the last person to break down the walls that Ari has built around himself.
But against all odds, when Ari and Dante meet, they develop a special bond that will teach them the most important truths of their lives, and help define the people they want to be. But there are big hurdles in their way, and only by believing in each other―and the power of their friendship―can Ari and Dante emerge stronger on the other side.

MY OPINION: ******

I've been meaning to read this book for a while now and I actually managed to come across my very own copy, which is relatively rare because I generally check out books from the local library and if I really enjoy them, I buy my own copy. But this one skipped the library formalities and we ended up with a very nice and enjoyable addition to my personal library that is evergrowing as the years go by.

This book was not what I expected at all. I actually had NO idea what this book was about but when I was in the bookstore, this father kept telling his daughter to read it because he said it "looked interesting and had good reviews and won many awards" and she looked at it and goes "Nope, not reading it. There's a guy." I was like "Okay then" so I picked it up and read the blurb. It honestly doesn't give too many hints about what this book is about in my opinion so I jumped in not knowing what I was going to read.

I really really really loved this book. There were times when I was a little skeptical and there were some parts that I found almost tiring to read through, but other than that, this was a really good book.

I LOVED the writing style in this book. There were a lot choppy sentences which I generally do not prefer because I find it rather annoying to read, but in this book, it worked. I feel as if it wouldn't have come out so well if the sentences were longer and more complex. I really liked how this book was so easy to understand at first and then you realize that there are hidden meanings that the author meant for you to find out. I also like the amount of dialogue in this book, though I would have preferred more tags like "he said" or "he asked" because sometimes I got a little confused as to who was talking. I know it was meant to be like that but I would go back and count from the last tag so I knew who was talking. Sometimes there were a couple of clues but other than that, it was a little hard for me.

The characters in this book were unflinchingly real and honest and I thought that they were so true to life. They weren't realistic, nope, they were real. I really enjoyed reading from Ari's point of view, though I would have preferred to see Dante's world through his eyes.

Legs was adorable! I feel as if he was a real dog in my mind and I could see him. I found him adorable but I wouldn't take a random dog from the park...

This book was amazing and I would recommend it to readers who are looking for a seemingly light read though there are deeper meanings and things that we should be looking out for.

Main Character: Ari
Sidekick(s): Dante, parents, etc
Villain(s): Leaving, becoming yourself, love, etc
Realistic Fiction Elements: This book is very real to life.