Scan barcode
Reviews tagging 'Violence'
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
462 reviews
br3anna_'s review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I think this book did a really good job at capturing teenagers and their way of not understanding how their body works.
But I feel at the endwhen Ari decided he loved Dante. His dad shouldn't have been the one to shout it at him. Personally I think he should've had a dream where he finally sees its Dante.
It felt whenever Ari or Dante had character development. They didn't change correctly. I hope in the second book they do better with this change
But I feel at the end
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Drug use, Homophobia, Alcohol, and Violence
tbrxinfinity's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Murder
soph05's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail and Homophobia
Moderate: Violence
Minor: War
adisiki's review
4.0
This was so cute! I loved how it dealt with identity; both Ari and Dante being Mexican-American and not feeling “Mexican” enough at times and dealing with their sexuality and coming to terms with it. Ari was such an angry, moody teenager and I loved his banter with his mom, with Gina and Susie, and with Dante and Dante was such a sweet lighthearted boy just trying to save the birds. The ending kind of felt a little rushed to me, but overall I loved the writing and the story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Homophobia
aformeracceleratedreader's review
emotional
medium-paced
3.5
I can see why so many people love this but for me, it was just okay. Loved the character development and the families' dynamics. Loved the coming of age storyline and discovering/acknowledging/accepting of one's self but it didn't totally grab me or wow me or leave a big impact on me like it has for others.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Alcohol, Drug use, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Car accident
Minor: War and Violence
cscharfway's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
3.75
Emotional portrayal of a teenage boy’s journey to understanding his family, his identity, his sexuality and where he fits in in the world. The characters are quirky, which presents interesting and unique dialogue, though hard for me personally to relate to. I also found it hard at times to figure out who was talking when a conversation was written out.
The relationship between Dante and Aristotle is sweet and heartwarming, especially next to the discrimination and hatred they are forced to deal with in the plot; a sad reality that continues to exist in many places today.
The relationship between Dante and Aristotle is sweet and heartwarming, especially next to the discrimination and hatred they are forced to deal with in the plot; a sad reality that continues to exist in many places today.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Homophobia
secre's review
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Urgh, I'm on the unpopular opinion road show again. The first ten percent of this was good. Then it fizzled until the last ten percent, which was absolutely stunning. Unfortunately, the eighty per cent in the middle was repetitive, slow, meandering and mostly without purpose. And it's obvious from the get go that we're meant to be building up to the big romantic reveal, but there's very little build up and it's just chucked at you in the last few pages instead.
I think my biggest issue throughout the novel was that it wasn't interesting, wasn't engaging and felt flat. The dialogue felt stilted, the characters didn't feel fully dimensional and there was almost no plot for the vast majority of the novel. You might get away with one of those flaws, but all three is a triple whammy without hope of reprieve. I was bored and that is one of the most fatal criticisms of a novel. It's better to make me angry than apathetic as at least I felt something.
It's a pity, because there's a solid kernel of excellence in here and the author can write, as demonstrated by the final ten per cent of the novel. It's just the bulk of this said very little in a whole lot of words whilst failing to build dynamic characters. There are some gems here, but they are floating in the dross.
I think my biggest issue throughout the novel was that it wasn't interesting, wasn't engaging and felt flat. The dialogue felt stilted, the characters didn't feel fully dimensional and there was almost no plot for the vast majority of the novel. You might get away with one of those flaws, but all three is a triple whammy without hope of reprieve. I was bored and that is one of the most fatal criticisms of a novel. It's better to make me angry than apathetic as at least I felt something.
It's a pity, because there's a solid kernel of excellence in here and the author can write, as demonstrated by the final ten per cent of the novel. It's just the bulk of this said very little in a whole lot of words whilst failing to build dynamic characters. There are some gems here, but they are floating in the dross.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Homophobia
Moderate: Hate crime and Car accident
fkshg8465's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Book was recommended to me by a colleague. I can see the appeal for young people, and I think it’s important for them to have access to books like this one. I might’ve loved the book more if I was the target audience.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Transphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Murder, Outing, War, Abandonment, Gaslighting, and Violence
sweetrosegirl76's review
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I liked this! It was sweet, easy read. Lin Manual was a good audio book narrator. I like the characters, they are both really sweet. Idk what the story graph question means if the cast of characters is diverse, do they mean many characters? Then no. If they mean are there racially diverse characters, yes bc it's about 2 Mexican boys and their Mexican families.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident
Moderate: Homophobia and Violence
Minor: Transphobia
henry10's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use and Alcohol
Minor: Violence