Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe: Tenth Anniversary Edition by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

57 reviews

sighclopss's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Look, honestly, it wasn't the worst queer book I've ever read, but it certainly wasn't the best. Definitely a let down from all the hype it receives.

Reading it felt like seeing a never ending stream of consciousness from Ari. Funnily enough though, for all of his thinking and wondering, not once did he show an inkling of same gender attraction? So buried under internalised homophobia, he had suffocated his own feelings beyond existence I guess?

I did enjoy the relationship dynamics of the boys with their respective parents, and subsequently the relationship Ari formed with Dante's parents. Aris' Dad's growth throughout the novel was also very moving. Ari and Dante themselves however barely felt like friends, let alone two youths coming into a new love with each other.

I also find that many YA novels fall into this glaring issue; of having an adult author who fails to realistically convey their teenage characters. 

This book had (spoiler alert) both internalised and physical homophobia (yay double whammy!), internalised racism and self hate- that's never resolved, pages of dialogue that do nothing to move the plot forward and a continued obsession/idealisation with a deadbeat brother who did an unforgivable crime. 

I'm honestly sick that our limited resources of LGBT+ content always seem to have depictions of hate crimes and trauma.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia

Moderate: Racism and Transphobia

robinks's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny 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? Yes

4.5

I’m so happy there is a sequel haha. And I want to see the movie! It was difficult for me to understand Ari in the first half of the book or so, but maybe it’s because I don’t have the experience of being a teenage boy growing up under the constraints of toxic masculinity/machismo.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Misogyny, Hate crime, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, War, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Racism, Drug use, Car accident, Cursing, Dysphoria, Lesbophobia, Grief, and Medical content

Minor: Murder, Pregnancy, Transphobia, Death, and Sexual assault

sashahc's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad 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? Yes

5.0

I just finished reading “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe” by Benjamin Alire Saénz.  WHOA.  It was A LOT.  Beautiful, melancholy, intense.  Not a cozy read, but if you want the heartbreak of being a serious teenager on the outskirts, it’s a good one.  There’s a reason it won all the awards.  #book

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Medical trauma and Mental illness

Minor: Racism

genevieve_eggleston's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cursing, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, and Homophobia

Minor: Blood, Alcoholism, Bullying, Drug use, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Medical content, Outing, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, and Racism

natkbailey's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Car accident, Grief, Medical content, Violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Homophobia, and Racism

daringreader13's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Biphobia, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Outing, Racism, Medical content, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Blood, Bullying, Car accident, Cursing, and Grief

alicia_g's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional lighthearted 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

4.25

A good book, but it was a bit slow for me at times.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Homophobia, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Grief, Drug use, Car accident, Violence, War, Sexual content, Racism, Physical abuse, and Murder

colorful_lulu's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, and Car accident

Moderate: Racism, Alcohol, Violence, Transphobia, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Murder, Bullying, and Pregnancy

alliskarathe's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

i adore them and the writing and lgtbqia books and that theres a second book and that this lived up to my expectations and that this made me cry and everything for a little while

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Homophobia, War, Alcohol, and Violence

Minor: Murder, Animal death, Pregnancy, Death, and Racism

theverycraftyvegan's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

You know what? If a book makes me laugh AND cry I think it deserves 5 stars. 

I am neither a teenager nor a boy, but this was a beautiful and engrossing story about family, friendship, hardships, self acceptance, trust, and love. 

I highly recommend listening to Lin-Manuel Miranda narration of the audio book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Racism, Homophobia, Alcohol, and Bullying

Moderate: Transphobia, Cursing, Drug use, and Outing

Minor: Pregnancy and Murder