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Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World Summary and Reviews

Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World

by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

  • Critics' Consensus (4):
  • Readers' Rating (1):
  • Published:
  • Oct 2021, 528 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

The highly anticipated sequel to the critically acclaimed, multiple award-winning novel Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe is an achingly romantic, tender tale sure to captivate fans of Adam Silvera and Mary H.K. Choi.

In Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, two boys in a border town fell in love. Now, they must discover what it means to stay in love and build a relationship in a world that seems to challenge their very existence.

Ari has spent all of high school burying who he really is, staying silent and invisible. He expected his senior year to be the same. But something in him cracked open when he fell in love with Dante, and he can't go back. Suddenly he finds himself reaching out to new friends, standing up to bullies of all kinds, and making his voice heard. And, always, there is Dante, dreamy, witty Dante, who can get on Ari's nerves and fill him with desire all at once.

The boys are determined to forge a path for themselves in a world that doesn't understand them. But when Ari is faced with a shocking loss, he'll have to fight like never before to create a life that is truthfully, joyfully his own.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"In Sáenz's careful, poetic hands and Ari's stubborn, searching voice, the narrative follows the Mexican American couple as they 'map out a new world' together, navigating desire...homophobia, racism, sexism, how to be a man without succumbing to toxic masculinity, how to cope with loss without giving in to grief, what it means to have—and be—a good teacher, and, fundamentally, how to love and be loved." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Sáenz packs a whole lot into these pages, but it's a testament to the characters that he's created that it never feels like too much. There's an unhurried quality to the author's wistful, tender prose that feels utterly intimate. Messily human and sincerely insightful." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

This information about Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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fia

beautiful wording, amazing characters, lacking plot, i miss dante :(
I wanna start this off by saying this books predecessor is probably one of my favorite written works, ever. As a LGBT mexican i really don’t see myself represented in media often, and so having a book— having characters like ari and dante in my life got me through some really rough points. my copy of the book is thoroughly annotated with
sticky notes and all, and the cover is being held together with binder clips. (i bought my copy in 2015.)

I preordered the sequel as soon as amazon let me and I received it on release day (oct 12), and read through it in a day. I’d missed these two SO much, and my expectations were high as I’m a huge fan of Sáenz’s other works.

But this one didn’t quite meet my expectations.
Although the book wasn’t rushed in any capacity- the pacing worked really well, I really felt like there wasn’t much of a story after school started for both boys.
there were also a ton of new characters introduced and i often found it really hard to keep track of who was who (note: i am autistic, and this is hard for me in most books, but i was having more difficulty than usual.)
I also feel like we didn’t really see a whole lot of Dante. But, seeing as the books are told from Ari’s perspective, I guess I can’t complain?
Overall the book was Good. All of this author’s work is gorgeous, i just felt like there was unreached potential for both characters here.

However, this author used to (i think he still does) tweet about dante and ari pretty frequently (sometimes about what they’re up to.) , and that satisfies my need for content, for now.

I’ve also seen photos of the casting for the movie, and I am beyond excited.

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More Information

Benjamin Alire Sáenz is an author of poetry and prose for adults and teens. He was the first Hispanic winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award and a recipient of the American Book Award for his books for adults. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe was a Printz Honor Book, the Stonewall Award winner, the Pura Belpré Award winner, the Lambda Literary Award winner, and a finalist for the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award. His first novel for teens, Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood, was an ALA Top Ten Book for Young Adults and a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His second book for teens, He Forgot to Say Goodbye, won the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award, the Southwest Book Award, and was named a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. He lives in El Paso, Texas.

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