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A review by sarahna
Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
This was one of my most anticipated books of the year and I liked it for the most part! Still, some passages and topics weren't handled with the sensitivity I would've liked.
This is going to be a spoiler review so heads up for that. I was so excited to see that the book picked up right after Ari confessed to Dante in the dessert instead of a big time jump placing them somewhere totally unrelated. I adored how tender and full of yearning Ari was for Dante and how well they communicated about wanting to get intimate but also being scared of it. It really felt like teenagers were discovering their first love. In general, I love Saenz's writing style. The words used are simple but the message hit hard and I put the book down several times just to think of certain passages.
Moments stand out to me such as Dante talking about the unjust, rampant racism in America and "how come they hate black people so much when they were the ones who brought them here in chains". Sentences like that just made me speechless. Also, the harsh confrontation with Bernardo in prison and how he felt free after finally seeing that his brother who killed a trans woman is simply a horrible person and beyond saving. No more nightmares about the brother he had supposedly lost. Speaking of which, I do wish the trans rep we got in the books was an alive and well person. Maybe one of his friends could've been trans instead of the woman who got killed. I'm aware that the books are set in the late 80s but still, maybe he could've killed a cis person for a different reason. It didn't sit right with me but even worse was the constant equating of gender to biological sex. Again, I know Ari and Dante are teenage boys set in the 80s but even mentioning it once and learning that their views are wrong would've been much better. I digress.
Another thing I really loved was how grief was portrayed. It was a constant theme to the backdrop of the AIDS crisis with Cassandra losing her brother to the disease and Ari suddenly losing his father to a heart attack after just having bonded with him. The way he felt empty, sobbed and instinctively isolated himself which his friend group didn't allow him to was beautiful. The book as a whole is quite melancholic, it rarely is just happy. I'd say the first 100 pages are, focusing on Ari and Dante loving and yearning for each other and going on the camping trip. I guess that's reality, it's always a mixed bag.
Regarding the bisexuality representation I feel torn. I read that a lot of people were offended by it and I do see how the tone in which Dante accused Ari of being bi was hostile. That is true. Still, the way Ari got close to Cassandra after hating her (he came out to her after her brother died of AIDS and she was mourning him) was sudden and Dante being a jealous and unreasonable teenager felt threatened by her. Ari keeps repeating in the book that he's gay and that he's not into girls so there was no bisexuality rep to be had and it was insensitive of Dante to react this way but he was purely jealous in that moment. It never comes up again, which is why I didn't tag the 'biphobia' in my review. This is my opinion as a queer woman and I respect other views on it of course.
About the ending I'm not sure how to feel. Ari and Dante discover the secrets of the universe is one of my all time favorite books and they feel destined for each other, made for each other even. I know that most first loves don't last forever and they are young, about to go to separate colleges which would force them into a long distance relationship but I was sure that wouldn't separate them. When Ari told Dante to pursuit his dream and go to art school in Paris he said it out of love and support but Dante saw it as a rejection and literally walked away from him. This all happens in the last 50 pages and I was hoping that after all that grief and emotional tumult we'd get a calmer, happy ending for those two. Instead Ari has to digest yet another loss and doesn't get to speak his peace because Dante just leaves and blocks his contact attempts. He goes to Paris and meets up with Ari and have a final talk. They barely do, it's stated that it's unnecessary to speak the words I love you and I missed you but it's somewhat open?
I'm over the moon that we got this sequel even though it couldn't have entirely lived up to the perfect predecessor. I missed his writing and the two main characters. I loved how deep certain topics and quotes went and he didn't shy away from controversial topics. Being gay in the 80s was one of the hardest things to be and coping with the AIDS crisis on top of that was just harrowing. While I do see the problematic trans/bi scenes in the book I put them in perspective of the 80s and the protagonists being teenage boys. I don't excuse or enjoy the passages written by any means. Still, I loved diving in their waters and the cartography theme. It's less of a hug than the first book but I'm glad we got it regardless.
This is going to be a spoiler review so heads up for that. I was so excited to see that the book picked up right after Ari confessed to Dante in the dessert instead of a big time jump placing them somewhere totally unrelated. I adored how tender and full of yearning Ari was for Dante and how well they communicated about wanting to get intimate but also being scared of it. It really felt like teenagers were discovering their first love. In general, I love Saenz's writing style. The words used are simple but the message hit hard and I put the book down several times just to think of certain passages.
Moments stand out to me such as Dante talking about the unjust, rampant racism in America and "how come they hate black people so much when they were the ones who brought them here in chains". Sentences like that just made me speechless. Also, the harsh confrontation with Bernardo in prison and how he felt free after finally seeing that his brother who killed a trans woman is simply a horrible person and beyond saving. No more nightmares about the brother he had supposedly lost. Speaking of which, I do wish the trans rep we got in the books was an alive and well person. Maybe one of his friends could've been trans instead of the woman who got killed. I'm aware that the books are set in the late 80s but still, maybe he could've killed a cis person for a different reason. It didn't sit right with me but even worse was the constant equating of gender to biological sex. Again, I know Ari and Dante are teenage boys set in the 80s but even mentioning it once and learning that their views are wrong would've been much better. I digress.
Another thing I really loved was how grief was portrayed. It was a constant theme to the backdrop of the AIDS crisis with Cassandra losing her brother to the disease and Ari suddenly losing his father to a heart attack after just having bonded with him. The way he felt empty, sobbed and instinctively isolated himself which his friend group didn't allow him to was beautiful. The book as a whole is quite melancholic, it rarely is just happy. I'd say the first 100 pages are, focusing on Ari and Dante loving and yearning for each other and going on the camping trip. I guess that's reality, it's always a mixed bag.
Regarding the bisexuality representation I feel torn. I read that a lot of people were offended by it and I do see how the tone in which Dante accused Ari of being bi was hostile. That is true. Still, the way Ari got close to Cassandra after hating her (he came out to her after her brother died of AIDS and she was mourning him) was sudden and Dante being a jealous and unreasonable teenager felt threatened by her. Ari keeps repeating in the book that he's gay and that he's not into girls so there was no bisexuality rep to be had and it was insensitive of Dante to react this way but he was purely jealous in that moment. It never comes up again, which is why I didn't tag the 'biphobia' in my review. This is my opinion as a queer woman and I respect other views on it of course.
About the ending I'm not sure how to feel. Ari and Dante discover the secrets of the universe is one of my all time favorite books and they feel destined for each other, made for each other even. I know that most first loves don't last forever and they are young, about to go to separate colleges which would force them into a long distance relationship but I was sure that wouldn't separate them. When Ari told Dante to pursuit his dream and go to art school in Paris he said it out of love and support but Dante saw it as a rejection and literally walked away from him. This all happens in the last 50 pages and I was hoping that after all that grief and emotional tumult we'd get a calmer, happy ending for those two. Instead Ari has to digest yet another loss and doesn't get to speak his peace because Dante just leaves and blocks his contact attempts. He goes to Paris and meets up with Ari and have a final talk. They barely do, it's stated that it's unnecessary to speak the words I love you and I missed you but it's somewhat open?
I'm over the moon that we got this sequel even though it couldn't have entirely lived up to the perfect predecessor. I missed his writing and the two main characters. I loved how deep certain topics and quotes went and he didn't shy away from controversial topics. Being gay in the 80s was one of the hardest things to be and coping with the AIDS crisis on top of that was just harrowing. While I do see the problematic trans/bi scenes in the book I put them in perspective of the 80s and the protagonists being teenage boys. I don't excuse or enjoy the passages written by any means. Still, I loved diving in their waters and the cartography theme. It's less of a hug than the first book but I'm glad we got it regardless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Hate crime, and Religious bigotry