Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

His whole life, Ari has been haunted by the hollow feeling of missing. He has always felt like he missed something, and that made him angry. It’s weird, being angry and having no one and nothing to turn that anger against. Ari loves his family very much, but they are all far from perfect. Ari’s father went to war at Vietnam when Ari was little, and the experience changed him – he has a lot of sour moods and likes to keep quiet, and he doesn’t want to talk about his traumas. Ari has two sisters and a brother, but they’re all more than 10 years older than him, so feels more like they’re his relatives, rather than siblings. His mother is really kind and loves him infinitely, but she’s complicated and tends to burry things that are hard to talk about. Namely, Ari’s brother ended up in prison when Ari was 4, and the whole family is more likely to pretend he’s dead, rather than explaining the matter to Ari.


Angel Aristotle Mendoza is what you get when you mix a complicated family with a fifteen-year-old who’s still trying to find himself in the world. He likes to keep to himself, as he’s been so persistently taught by his family’s behavior. One day he meets Dante at a swimming pool and universe grants him with nothing less than a bunch of problems and jumbles of emotion.

This was a really cute book full of love and understanding, showing difficulties that can emerge between people that care for each other very much. Being a teenager isn’t easy, and anger and sense of eternal loneliness are infrequently present in the process of one’s maturing. This is a story of Ari’s maturing and growing on a spiritual level, following the mystery of his brother and finding love that was considered rather uncommon back then. I loved Ari’s supportive and loving, and yet complicated family. They were definitely the best part of this book and Ari’s story.

Even though I liked its concept and all that, I didn’t find myself actually hardcore enjoying the story. It’s very readable and easy to get lost in characters thoughts and problems, but the thing… that’s the only thing it’s composed of. No matter how much I liked interactions and writing style, the plot was weak and too slow for my measures. It’s all a bit too poetic and philosophic, but I don’t know what else could I have expected from a book called Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe xd

The best part about this book was Ari, the rest of it didn’t catch my attention as nearly as his character. I just loved his sense of humor, his “I actually don’t give a fuck about anything but I WILL fight you because I can” attitude and a silent way he deals with the storm inside of him. I didn’t care about Dante at all, except for his role in Ari’s happiness, and let’s not forget the best good boy Legs xd

The romance part was adorable and their love is something really special, although my thoughts weren’t focused on the two of them until the very end of the book. I was so caught up in Ari’s family drama and his inner dilemma’s that I almost forgot they were supposed to end up together. So their relationship kind of came out of the blue, guess that’s what happens when you over-analyze a good character :P