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

I think I discovered this book on Goodreads, it was one of the recommended books for me. The minute I saw the title I wanted to read it. I mean, who wouldn't? It's amazing. I also read a couple of reviews and they were all brilliant and the book seemed to have gotten a lot of awards. And it was described like a "lyrical" novel. So reading it was a no-brainer. 

It totally lived up to my expectations. It was so good. I just loved how this was written. This is a story about a boy named Ari (short of Aristotle) who is this angry kid. Really, really angry. He's mad at the world and also, he's mad at himself. He is constantly trying to find himself, to understand the world and the people around him. He lives with his dad, who fought in the Vietnam war and is dealing with the ghosts of the war which never really left him. And his mom, who is dealing with the ghost of his brother, Bernardo, who was incarcerated. Ari's parents never really talk about him which (like everything) makes Ari angry. Ari is also a loner, who doesn't really have friends, until one day he goes to the pool and meets Dante. 

And right there starts this stunning and beautiful story about a friendship. 

I really liked this book. I ended up reading it in a day because I was really enjoying it. I love books like these, where nothing actually happens and everything happens at the same time. There's not any real plot here, but everything goes kind of slowly, which gives it this realistic feel and makes it relatable. I've never read anything by this author, but I thought this was so nicely
written. I have most of the book highlighted on my Kindle, because it's just so beautiful and sad and true. I really loved it and would recommend it, especially to teenagers, because I feel that it captures that loneliness, the feeling of being out of place and not knowing who you truly are really well.