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A review by gabbygarcia
Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
emotional
hopeful
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
3.0
The second half of this book was significantly better than the first half. It had the momentum and powerful character arcs that I was looking for. I would've rated this book higher if not for the first half--it was quite slow, very repetitive, and not much happened. In my opinion, it could have been condensed significantly.
Additionally, I felt the discussion of AIDS was quite forced; discussion of AIDS did not exist in the first book at all, so it felt like the characters had never thought about it before, and all of a sudden they were experts on the subject. Also, the adults in this book were almost too accepting (??) and nearly always had the right thing to say about everything, which felt like an unrealistic departure from the first novel. People aren't perfect; they don't always know how to talk about difficult issues that are affecting their kids and students.
That being said, I'm glad I finished it. It made me cry, it made me laugh. The second half was really beautiful and powerful. I just wish it was shorter (and a little less preachy... show! don't tell!!)
Additionally, I felt the discussion of AIDS was quite forced; discussion of AIDS did not exist in the first book at all, so it felt like the characters had never thought about it before, and all of a sudden they were experts on the subject. Also, the adults in this book were almost too accepting (??) and nearly always had the right thing to say about everything, which felt like an unrealistic departure from the first novel. People aren't perfect; they don't always know how to talk about difficult issues that are affecting their kids and students.
That being said, I'm glad I finished it. It made me cry, it made me laugh. The second half was really beautiful and powerful. I just wish it was shorter (and a little less preachy... show! don't tell!!)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Grief
Moderate: Death, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Transphobia, and Violence
AIDS epidemic