Review: Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World

“Life, Ari, can be an ugly thing. But life can be so incredibly beautiful. It’s both. And we have to learn to hold the contradictions inside us without despairing, without losing our hope.”

Aristotle has spent all of his high school years hiding his true identity. When he meets and falls in love with Dante, he finally feels like he is showing his true self and can’t go back. Now Aristotle and Dante must face life together in 1980s America as a couple. We see how their relationships with each other, their friends and their family evolve throughout the novel.

Benjamin Alire Sáenz’s sequel to Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe brings you on a rollercoaster of emotions. Alire Sáenz writes in such a poetic way, every single page I read feels like a poem. When we get to read Ari’s letters to Dante, I feel so involved with the story and what is going on in Aristotle’s head. Learning about how difficult the lives were of the LGBTQ+ community in the 1980s was heartbreakingly sad.

This book is for readers who are not afraid to venture out of their comfort zone and who love a good romance book. The characters face homophobia which may be triggering.

Esmèe Kidd, 15