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Reviews tagging 'Grief'
Arystoteles i Dante przepadają w toni życia by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
160 reviews
heavenssnat's review against another edition
emotional
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
5.0
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe has been my favourite book and my comfort book for so long. I absolutely loved the story and the flawed way the main character was thinking and I loved the focus on the characters.
This sequel is wonderful. Most of the book is Ari coming into himself, learning to accept love and parts of himself and getting to know his parents, really knowing them. He learns to love more openly, to let people in and to grow up. After reading three fourths of it I knew there was something incredibly heartbreaking coming. It was a bit predictable, I guessed what could've happened even just reading the synopsis, even though I hoped for the best. I cried a lot and was so sad, but the way it was handled was so beautiful. The author has a way of describing what it's like to deal with loss, in all it's different ways, and it's beautiful.
The ending was heartbreaking. Not in the way that I cried, but in a way that that was and still is the reality for people of the LGBTQ+ community. The uncertainty of our futures never really goes away.
I kind of hoped for an ending that wasn't left open like that, I kind of wanted it to be a closed and happy ending. But I know that that's just not the way this author writes. None of his books that I've read so far have had a very closed and specific ending. It's more like a "everything will be ok, life is scary, let's see where it takes us and enjoy it while we can".
I know that some of my thoughts on this book will change with time, just like they always do. But even though I was terrified of reading this, scared of it ruining the happiness the first book gave me, I am really happy that I read it.
Benjamin Alire Sáenz writes stories that are just so heartbreakingly beautiful.
This sequel is wonderful. Most of the book is Ari coming into himself, learning to accept love and parts of himself and getting to know his parents, really knowing them. He learns to love more openly, to let people in and to grow up. After reading three fourths of it I knew there was something incredibly heartbreaking coming. It was a bit predictable, I guessed what could've happened even just reading the synopsis, even though I hoped for the best. I cried a lot and was so sad, but the way it was handled was so beautiful. The author has a way of describing what it's like to deal with loss, in all it's different ways, and it's beautiful.
The ending was heartbreaking. Not in the way that I cried, but in a way that that was and still is the reality for people of the LGBTQ+ community. The uncertainty of our futures never really goes away.
I kind of hoped for an ending that wasn't left open like that, I kind of wanted it to be a closed and happy ending. But I know that that's just not the way this author writes. None of his books that I've read so far have had a very closed and specific ending. It's more like a "everything will be ok, life is scary, let's see where it takes us and enjoy it while we can".
I know that some of my thoughts on this book will change with time, just like they always do. But even though I was terrified of reading this, scared of it ruining the happiness the first book gave me, I am really happy that I read it.
Benjamin Alire Sáenz writes stories that are just so heartbreakingly beautiful.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, and Racism
Minor: Transphobia, Deadnaming, and Bullying
Transphobia:shoni's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
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 have so many emotions and thoughts going through me that I can’t even put them into words. I was taken away by the first book but this sequel just took it to a whole new level. It brought in a new perspective of how important it is to surround yourself with people who love and understand you. How important it is to be your true self because otherwise, you are just living a life that’s a lie, a life that is making both you and others around you unhappy.
In the book, I already knew that I related to Ari. That his struggles were essentially my own struggles that I’ve been aware of over the last few months/years. Yet in this book, we really saw Ari’s character development and just how hard it is to grow up in a world that has so much hatred in it. While I was reading I just kept taking pictures and underlining so many passages because it felt like a direct look into my life. Like so much that one of the conversations Ari had with his friends I had with a friend a day before I got to the part. So I realized that we are essentially living the same life. But his character development was just written so beautifully. It wasn’t just him getting better and better, he had his moments where we went back down. And that’s how life is. High moments are followed by low moments and low moments are followed by high. I also love how it was shown that trauma can cause you to forget things at times. To not remember things but in bits and pieces.
It also made me realize in said low moments, shutting myself out from everyone I know isn’t helping anyone. That being surrounded by love and reminders of how these moments will pass makes the biggest difference. This story does such a wonderful job of reminding you that teenagers are stupid but also they are the only ones who can do anything. Even when you don’t agree, it’s around that time when you discover who you are and what you want to be. And no one excepts that to be easy. Also seeing how Ari dealt with the loss of his father and how that shaped him meant so much to me as I just experienced so much loss in my life. And seeing how he dealt with it, the words he used, and how he realized that living in the past and being consumed by sadness isn't helping anyone. That we have to keep moving forward and live for them instead was so personal to me and I loved it.
The friendships shown here also show that you cannot always know what’s going on in others' minds, but they will be there in times of need. That your friends will know what you need even if you don’t know it. Just seeing Ari take control of his life and seeing his friendship with Cassandra was also one of my favorites as it showed that she was the friend who never pushed and cared. She understood him on a deeper level without having to talk and physically say something so special and I want that.
I just really love seeing this and made me realize how much my friends actually mean to me and how much of a difference they made in my life.
I just really love seeing this and made me realize how much my friends actually mean to me and how much of a difference they made in my life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Transphobia and Racism
Minor: Deadnaming
bookswithlauren's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? No
4.5
I really enjoyed the first book in this series and I have seen some people saying this sequel was unnecessary, however, I really enjoyed this addition and I think it gave us much more of a story. I even think their could be a third book too! I listened to this book on audio as I did with the first and I really do believe it gave me a much better connection with the characters than if I was reading it myself.
Like the first book, we tackle so many real life problems in this book! Figuring out who you are in this world is definitely the main theme of this book series but in this sequel, we delve family dynamics, importance of friendships and navigating a relationship in your teens much more. The characters of Ari and Dante are so beautifully written that I felt a connection with them instantaneously. Their thoughts, feelings, life experiences are so relatable and raw that it really touches the reader, especially if they have similar experiences. I adore both boys' families and they really bring a sense of hope and love to the story.
Similarly to the first book, the only thing I wish was different was how fast paced the ending of the book was. I feel it would have been much better if it was a little more paced out. I do hope we get a third book because I do feel the story ended quite suddenly when there was more to explore.
Like the first book, we tackle so many real life problems in this book! Figuring out who you are in this world is definitely the main theme of this book series but in this sequel, we delve family dynamics, importance of friendships and navigating a relationship in your teens much more. The characters of Ari and Dante are so beautifully written that I felt a connection with them instantaneously. Their thoughts, feelings, life experiences are so relatable and raw that it really touches the reader, especially if they have similar experiences. I adore both boys' families and they really bring a sense of hope and love to the story.
Similarly to the first book, the only thing I wish was different was how fast paced the ending of the book was. I feel it would have been much better if it was a little more paced out. I do hope we get a third book because I do feel the story ended quite suddenly when there was more to explore.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Grief, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, and Transphobia
cranewife's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Racism, Transphobia, Death of parent, Homophobia, Hate crime, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content
applebutter_and_pickles's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Violence, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Homophobia
Minor: Alcohol, Bullying, Deadnaming, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Suicide, and Religious bigotry
emmapaigereads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Homophobia, and Grief
jazzy_t's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? No
3.5
Really great book, with some beautiful thoughts and feeling within it. Written in such a metaphorical descriptive way which is great read. There were a couple of plot holes, where I became confused specifically the death of Rico which seemed to come from nowhere . There were also some parts where I felt I went a little far on content, specifically with some of the speaches the characters did within the book like with Cassandra's speach she basically outed Ari I felt . But overall a really nice book to read with some beautiful quotes and metaphors to take away with you after reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Racism and Transphobia
elli15's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.5
It made me cry so be warned
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Grief
yoursupremereads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
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
3.75
Saenz did it again! Not only did he give Ari and Dante a hopefully definitive happy ending, but he found a way to flesh out the inner world of Ari Mendoza as well. Adding complexity through simplicity, Saenz further investigated Ari's personal landscape and his view of the world. Though the ending seemed a bit rushed I was still smiling by the final page. Once again, you jut wanna reach into the book and hug Ari and Dante all the time. You root for them. You love them. You adore them. You want them to know that things get better with time and that they are going to be the best people they can be by the end. I think that's what I appreciate the most about this duology. I care about Ari, I care about Dante, I care about their adorable parents and the bonds these two families have created that centers around the love of their two boys for one another. And even though there is a tragic loss in the book that literally made me scream at the ceiling in the middle of the night while reading it, Ari and Dante's journey was well worth the heartache. This book and it's OG novel are a fantastic addition to the YA queer canon and everyone should give them a go. Highly recommended. Will cherish these two books forever and ever!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, and Hate crime
rebeccap's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Grief and Cursing
Minor: Transphobia, Hate crime, and Racism