Reviews tagging 'War'

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

169 reviews

pata's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Grief, War, Transphobia, Car accident, Drug use, and Alcohol

makoshark44's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Hate crime

Minor: Transphobia, Murder, War, and Mental illness

this book was a really well written and poetic mlm y/a coming of age, you come to love the characters quickly and the plot is both fast moving but complex at later points. i really recommend this ill be reading the sequel next!

amandalorianxo's review against another edition

reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I feel like the 2020’s decade will the one where I discover and find myself myself reading books I should have read in high school and college but never did lol. Aristotle & Dante was one where I saw a multitude of times but didn’t bother picking up. Now that I finally did… I will say that the setting and the full cast wasn’t what lead me to three stars. It was more so the style of writing that made me question - where was the compelling, pull that makes me feel something for these two teens bonding together? It just doesn’t feel authentic. The constant action of laughing, the dialogue that repeats and sounds so unnatural.  I also was born in a Latin American family & even though I’m happy that the parents

Spoiler

are progressive, I can never see a parent telling their child “Hey you’re gay and you just aren’t aware so be gay with Dante (he’s been in love with you for over a year,)it’s ok.” Aren’t we supposed to let Aristotle figure that out for himself? Or maybe he’s bi or ace or doesn’t want a label / want to figure out his sexuality right now ? The odd brush of a murder of a trans person done by Bernardo also threw me off. I understand this is the late 80’s but … are we not going to acknowledge that’s wrong? Bernardo’s angry but his anger is no excuse to kill / hurt anyone.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Transphobia, Homophobia, and War

ksmith_23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident and Violence

Moderate: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Alcohol, Blood, Physical abuse, Hate crime, War, Cancer, and Homophobia

Minor: Murder, Pregnancy, Grief, and Drug use

itsjusterika's review against another edition

emotional fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Hate crime, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: War

tearoyale's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, War, Violence, Hate crime, Medical content, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Homophobia

gabriella_'s review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Benjamin Alire Sáenz put so much heart into this book. I wish I read this when I was a kid - I think I would’ve enjoyed it more when I was younger. The way he writes dialogue is fun. The way he writes emotional availability (and unavailability) feels so textured you can almost touch it. The character dynamics - especially Aristotle’s and Dante’s - have a whimsy that makes you feel young while you’re reading. 

This is a quick read if you’re in the mood for a pick-me-up coming-of-age with substance! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Grief, Car accident, Alcohol, Homophobia, Drug use, Violence, War, Blood, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

shirarweiss's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was beautiful and heartbreaking. I found myself in Ari and his experiences of emotion. 

Spoiler

While I loved the way it wrapped up with Ari accepting his love for Dante, it felt very sudden. I understand that Ari was confused but it didn’t seem like that’s how he was feeling? It felt a bit forced by his parents?

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Car accident, Grief, Homophobia, Violence, War, Death, Hate crime, and Murder

lambclown's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcohol, War, Car accident, Transphobia, and Murder

Minor: Pregnancy

melodyramirez's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Beautiful

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Violence, Car accident, Hate crime, Homophobia, and War

Minor: Cancer, Alcohol, Addiction, Body shaming, and Ableism