Sáenz, Benjamin Alire. Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. 2014. 359p. FIC SAE on the library shelves. This book has been nominated for a Flume Award in 2015.
It is 1987, and Ari is a loner who deals with issues of loss. His father fought in Vietnam but doesn’t talk about it. His mother loves him dearly and they have a stable relationship, but she mourns the loss of her older son, who is in prison and whom Ari hasn’t seen since he was four. Ari’s sisters are also much older, so he lives alone at home with his parents. And no one talks about their feelings or emotions.
When the summer of his fifteen years begin, Ari meets Dante at the pool. Quirky, bright, talkative and artistic, Dante is the opposite of Ari. But they both hit it off quickly when Dante offers to teach Ari to swim. A friendship like no others begins to blossom. When Dante finds himself in the street, tending to an injured bird, it is Ari who saves his life by jumping in front of the car that would surely have hit Dante.
Ari recuperates from his wounds, and Dante and his family, who are the opposite of Ari’s family, move to Chicago for a year-long sabbatical. Communicating through letters, Ari and Dante continue to explore their feelings towards the world and towards each other. Are they more than friends? Dante wants it to be so, but Ari’s not sure. Can he deal with all of his issues before finding peace with the person he really is?
No comments:
Post a Comment