Book Review | ARISTOTLE AND DANTE DISCOVER THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

ARISTOTLE AND DANTE DISCOVER THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE

Aristotle and Dante, #1
BY BENJAMIN ALIRE SÁENZ | PUBLICATION: FEBRUARY 2012
SIMON & SCHUSTER | GENRE: YA FICTION
RATING: ★★★★★

“There is something miraculous about the ordinary
— about friendship as liberation, about the bravery of discovering who you are,
about the tenderness of being seen.”

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Dante can swim. Ari can't. Dante is articulate and self-assured. Ari has a hard time with words and suffers from self-doubt. Dante gets lost in poetry and art. Ari gets lost in thoughts of his older brother who is in prison. Dante is fair skinned. Ari's features are much darker. It seems that a boy like Dante, with his open and unique perspective on life, would be the last person to break down the walls that Ari has built around himself.

But against all odds, when Ari and Dante meet, they develop a special bond that will teach them the most important truths of their lives, and help define the people they want to be. But there are big hurdles in their way, and only by believing in each other—and the power of their friendship—can Ari and Dante emerge stronger on the other side.

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This was my first book by Benjamin Alire Sáenz, and I’m instantly a fan.

I’d like to begin by calling Aristotle (Ari) a lonely boy, but that wouldn’t be entirely fair. At the start of the story, he seems almost comfortable in his aloneness — steeped in bitterness, confusion, and a quiet resignation. He rarely speaks to his family, though his mother tries. His only brother is in prison, a subject the family avoids; his sisters are much older and already married; and his father keeps a distance built not of space but of silence. Ari has his own walls, too. He’s afraid of emotional attachment, of the responsibility that comes with being known. Yet beneath all that, he carries a storm of emotions — beautiful, sad, and aching to be released.

I had learned to hide what I felt. No, that's not true.
There was no learning involved.
I had been born knowing how to hide what I felt.
Dante, on the other hand, is a breath of fresh air. His worldview is relentlessly bright. He adores his parents and values their opinions with a kind of wholeheartedness that feels rare. He’s emotional, artistic, curious — a boy who reads deeply and feels deeply. When he meets Ari at the local swimming pool and offers to teach him to swim, their friendship forms almost instantly. Throughout the story, Dante keeps gently, persistently pressing against Ari’s walls of fear and uncertainty.

And it seemed to me that Dante's face was a map of the world.
A world without any darkness.
Wow, a world without darkness. How beautiful was that?
This is a slow but steady, character‑driven narrative, and the investment in these boys is its greatest reward. I loved watching the stark differences between them — and between their families — and how each boy influences the other toward honesty, healing, and self‑reckoning. The breaking down of walls comes with moments of self‑discovery, painful clarity, and quiet triumph.

"All this time I had been trying to figure out the secrets of the universe…
All of the answers had always been so close
and yet I'd always fought them."
Sáenz writes with a lyrical softness that’s easy to follow and even easier to feel. Not everything is humorous; Ari carries more heartbreak than he knows what to do with. But the novel still manages to make you believe in people again. There is something miraculous about the ordinary — about friendship as liberation, about the bravery of discovering who you are, about the tenderness of being seen. ARISTOTLE AND DANTE is a charming, reflective journey of two boys stumbling toward themselves. In the end, they learn that the secrets of the universe were never as far away as they feared.

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About the Author:

Benjamin Alire Sáenz is an author of poetry and prose for adults and teens. He was the first Hispanic winner of the PEN/Faulkner Award and a recipient of the American Book Award for his books for adults. He is the author of Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, which was a Printz Honor Book, the Stonewall Award winner, the Pura Belpré Award winner, the Lambda Literary Award winner, and a finalist for the Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award, and its sequel, Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World. His first novel for teens, Sammy and Juliana in Hollywood, was an ALA Top Ten Book for Young Adults and a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. His second book for teens, He Forgot to Say Goodbye, won the Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award, the Southwest Book Award, and was named a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age. He lives in El Paso, Texas. Photograph by Vantage Point Studios

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2015 Reading Challenge | August

Last month, I took a slow reading pace. Mainly, because I am ahead of the reading plan I set for myself this year. Two, because I wanted to focus on some ARCs and write my feedback. Three, because I need to finish the module for the Sunday School needed this conference year for our church. And yay, because somehow everything is lining up as it should be. But still keeping my fingers crossed *sigh*. 

Before you truly get bored with my life story, here are the books I've read last July:

• The Quiet American by Graham Greene - 4/5 stars - A razor-sharp exploration of moral conflict on both personal and social affairs. TFG's choice for July.
• Two Years, Eight Months, and Twenty-Eight Nights by Salman Rushdie - 4/5 stars - A deep dive into strangeness, shattering all barriers between the jinn world and ours. Coming September 8, 2015.
• Everything You & I Could Have Been If We're You & I by Albert Espinosa - 4/5 stars - A beautifully flowing story with grief and hope at the center. The English translation is now available via Kindle.
• This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance by Jonathan Evison - 5/5 stars - Witty and charming. A character study reflecting on human goodness and flaws.  Coming September 8, 2015.
• Fuzzy Mud by Louis Sachar - 4/5 stars - A Middle-grade book that tackles how our defiance to have unlimited energy sources can be dangerous. Released today!

For August, here are:

• Ubik by Philip K. Dick - TFG's book for this month. Gosh, this one is really hard to put down. When I reached half point, there's no stopping. So, I finished it last week. But habit compels me to include it here. 
• Everlasting by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss - A favorite writer, and this was her last book before her early demise. The book was a gift from Maria, two Christmases ago. I just couldn't face the fact that this was KW's last book. So, I am reading this now as my way of closure. 
• To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee - A re-reading (or listening) is in order since TFG will be reading Go Set a Watchman, set on September of this year. I just purchased both audiobooks and I am good to go.

Hey, set aside some ample reading time. Remember,  

"Books don't offer real escape,

but they can stop a mind scratching itself raw."

~ David Mitchell, Cloud Atlas

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Book Review | FUZZY MUD by Louis Sachar

   

August 4, 2015;
Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Be careful. Your next step may be your last.

Fifth-grader Tamaya Dhilwaddi and seventh grader Marshall Walsh have been walking to and from Woodridge Academy together since elementary school. But their routine is disrupted when bully Chad Hilligas challenges Marshall to a fight. To avoid the conflict, Marshall takes a shortcut home through the off-limits woods. Tamaya, unaware of the reason for the detour, reluctantly follows. They soon get lost. And then they find trouble. Bigger trouble than anyone could ever have imagined.
In the days and weeks that follow, the authorities and the U.S. Senate become involved, and what they uncover might affect the future of the world. ~ Goodreads

Multi-awarded author LOUIS SACHAR stepped up and wrote a book that will challenge our dependence on industrialization, advanced technology, and consumerism, wherein we often sacrifice nature and human well-being.

In a taut series of events, readers will get to know Marshall, Tamaya, and Chad from Heath Cliff, Pennsylvania. They are students of the exclusive Woodridge School for young bright minds. The woods beyond the school perimeter is off-limits, but that’s exactly where the catastrophe started and had put everyone in Heath Cliff in peril.

Louis Sachar and his kind is a rarity –authors who write about middle graders and understand the issues they are going through –wanting to belong, bullying, and the need for a compassionate and sturdy family –things adults mostly overlook. Their writings remind people of caring for others and being accountable for their actions. Those are very evident here in his new book.

FUZZY MUD weaved suspense, school life, and friendship together into a cautionary tale about our uncontrollable yearning for energy sources and our total disregard for its adverse effects. I really love how this story turned into a sympathetic and accessible instrument for kids, despite the heaviness of the theme.

Head out and buy a copy on August 4.

Book details:
Title: Fuzzy Mud
Author: Louis Sachar
Publication: August 4, 2015; Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Genre: Children’s Literature (10 and up)
Rating: ★★★★

*Thank you Random House Children's Books and Netgalley for lending me a copy in exchange for this unbiased review.

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Book Review | This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance by Jonathan Evison

  

September 8, 2015;

Algonquin Books

With her husband Bernard two years in the grave, seventy-nine-year-old Harriet Chance sets sail on an ill-conceived Alaskan cruise only to discover through a series of revelations that she’s been living the past sixty years of her life under entirely false pretenses. There, amid the buffets and lounge singers, between the imagined appearance of her late husband and the very real arrival of her estranged daughter midway through the cruise, Harriet is forced to take a long look back, confronting the truth about pivotal events that changed the course of her life.

Jonathan Evison—bestselling author of West of Here, The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving, and All About Lulu—has crafted a bighearted novel with a supremely endearing heroine at its center. Through Harriet, he paints a bittersweet portrait of a postmodern everywoman with great warmth, humanity, and humor. Part dysfunctional love story, part poignant exploration of the mother/daughter relationship, nothing is what it seems in this tale of acceptance, reexamination, forgiveness, and, ultimately, healing. It is sure to appeal to admirers of Evison’s previous work, as well as fans of such writers as Meg Wolitzer, Junot Diaz, and Karen Joy. ~Goodreads

Widowed, Harriet Chance appeared to be content with her current life, viewed from a very considerable distance, in spite of the changes. It was only later that her life took a closer inspection… only when Bernard started showing up (again) unexpectedly, even in public… two years after his death.

Harriet and Bernard had been married for five decades. Their life had a pattern and it’s well-printed on Harriet. But there is more to Harriet’s life than just being married to Bernard –there’s motherhood, ambitions, regrets, and secrets, too. Darting to and fro through Harriet’s life, the story took a leisurely pace, picking some significant events and revealing the life-turns and corners she went through. All of them buried one on top of the other across time.

This is my first book by Jonathan Evison, and it is very evident that he already established his own voice in the literary world. He took Harriet and made a profound exploration of one ordinary life, yet intricate and compelling, with witticism and sting. I totally love the distinct choice of narration. For some reason, I kept hearing Edward Murrow’s voice as the narrator making another moral comment. Only this time he is crossing the divide between fiction and reality, using them here and then, to bring Harriet into a fully-realized character that we cannot easily forget.

However we see it–witty and charming or whimsical and profound- THIS IS YOUR LIFE, HARRIET CHANCE is an engrossing read that talks not just about forgiving others but for oneself as well; about rectifying things before it’s too late, and moving on. This is a fine example of a character study that reflects two sides of the coin in each person -each one is good and flawed, just like the rest of humanity.

I highly suggest that you put this on your TBR.

Book details:Title:  This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance

Author:  Jonathan Evison
Publication: September 8, 2015; Algonquin Books
Genre:  Contemporary Fiction
Rating: ★★★★★

*Thank you, Algonquin and Netgalley for lending me a copy in exchange for this unbiased review.

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Book Review | Everything You and I Could Have Been If We Weren't You and I by Albert Espinosa

   

July 2, 2015;

Penguin Random House

Can you imagine a future where everyone has given up sleeping?

From the creator of the television series Red Band Society and author of the international bestseller The Yellow World comes this uniquely special novel.

What if I could reveal your secrets with just a glance? And what if I could feel with your heart just by looking at you? And what if --in a single moment-- I could know that we were made for each other? Marcos has just lost his mother, a famous dancer who taught him everything, and he decides that his world can never be the same without her. Just as he is about to make a radical change, a phone call turns his world upside down. ~Goodreads

What attracted me most about this book, when I saw it on NetGalley, was the simple but charming orange font. And the title was so unusually long, it has to have great meaning, right? Well as it happens, this is one of those books that have much greater content than what its title implied.

In the future, a drug was developed to eradicate human sleep. Marcos decided to join the great population, who gave up sleeping, after his mother’s death. For him, losing her is like losing all the beauty in everything. But just before he could inject himself, something much important, much bigger, than his plans took precedence.

The truth is that when I found out yesterday that my mother had left me,

I realized that I would leave the world.

I decided that the world had lost its best asset and I stopped believing in it, because nobody had held on to her; the world didn’t stop or even seem shocked by its loss.

It was Albert Espinosa’s keen prose that pulled me into the heart of this book. It has the ability to shake the reader and consider things we mostly ignore –sleeping, random thoughts, hugs, or unwanted affection. It’s interesting how he discussed minute things in profound detail. Imagine giving up the ability to dream, or reduce your existence to moving and be productive 24/7 and to have no escape from exhaustion or depression after each day. It’s so sad.

I burst into tears. I love that expression. You don’t say someone has burst into a meal or burst into a walk. You burst into tears or into laughter. I think it’s worth bursting into pieces for those feelings.

This book had a lot of things going on with grief and hope at the center of it all. The story figuratively and literally moves around, too. For a short book, it is tightly packed. The plot is new and strange, but nitpicking will only make it fall apart. And besides, you’ll miss the beautifully flowing story that it is.

Just like you laugh at somebody’s joke and you accept that their words make you happy, you shouldn’t fear telling someone that their skin, their eyes, their mouth make you feel something else. We have to decriminalize sexual acts, bring them into real life, everyday life, and tie them to life instead of sex.

I recommend that you read it too. Let us be reminded to view things without prejudice or malice.

Book details:

Title:  Everything You and I Could Have Been If WeWeren't You and I

Author:  Albert Espinosa

Publication:  July 2, 2015; Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial

Genre:  Fiction, Sci-fi/ Fantasy

Rating:  ★★★★

*Thank you Random House for lending me a copy in exchange for this unbiased review.

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WHEN WE WERE ORPHANS by Kazuo Ishiguro

     

Christopher Banks recounted his life from a young boy in Shanghai to the abduction of his parents, to his stunning rise as a detective in England, and finally having the means in solving and finding his parents back in Shanghai.


The story depends heavily on how much Christopher remembers and how much he trusts his own memories. If there’s such a thing as perfect recall, then Christopher failed miserably on that account. But it doesn’t mean Christopher was insincere with his narration. On the contrary, his sincerity and deep desire to adhere to his task are his best qualities. So, the book is not an inspection of human honesty.  This is an intuitive examination of the fraudulent nature of memory, the prejudice of perception, and the reader’s inclination to become lost in the inaccuracy of the narrator’s tale.

Important. Very important. Nostalgic. When we nostalgic, we remember.  A world better than this world we discover when we grow. We remember and wish good world come back again. So very important.

Slowly, WHEN WE WERE ORPHANS turns into a pounding thriller. The revelation was both gripping and profound. It was difficult to hold emotions after the full horror of what happened to Christopher’s mother was revealed. The unfairness of one woman’s struggle to uphold her son in a crazy world filled with deceit and ruthlessness.

Between the lines of this whole story, wherein Christopher and his parents were viciously caught in, are the evil manipulations of the British trading companies who wanted to suppress an entire nation by making them opium addicts, and their connivance with the Chinese warlords. Perhaps, this is indeed one of the shameful parts of British history.

After all, when we were children, when things went wrong, there wasn’t much we could do to help put it right. But now we’re adults, now we can. That’s the thing, you see? Look at us, Akira. After all this time, we can finally put things right.

I wanted to go back and read my own recounting of how I initially viewed this story from our buddy-reading thread. Like Christopher, I am relying mostly on how much I remembered. But of course, I do remember liking it, absolutely enjoyed the narrative voice.  And Ishiguro’s distinct prose had a great influence on that.

Book details:

Title: When We Were Orphans

Author: Kazuo Ishiguro

Publication:  March 5t,h 2001, Faber & Faber

Genre:  Contemporary/Literary Fiction

Rating: ★★★★

Review from buddies:
Monique
Lynai

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2015 Reading Challenge | July

Here are the books I read last month:

• The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett -3.5/5 stars- TFG's book for June. Mentioned as the starting point for the "detective noir" sub-genre.
• Home by Marilynne Robinson -5/5 stars- I love going back to Gilead, going back to the solemn and fervent narration, and meeting old characters. This turned me into a sappy sack, but I don't regret it.
• Lila by Marilynne Robinson -5/5 stars- It is really astonishing how Robinson gave this a different voice while retaining that certain quietness found in the first two books. 
• Flawless by Sarah Lemmon -3/5 stars- This SF debut has some good potentials.
• Arrival: From the Sky by David McGowan -3/5 stars- Part I of a series, with an interesting array of characters.
• Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool -5/5 stars- This is a gem of a story and the characters stick like glue. 

It's July, we are halfway through 2015 already.  For the past 2 two years, I posted a list of my best reads as a mid-year report. This year I've decided to include it here instead since there are only four books that reached that special mark this time. 

• Home by Marilynne Robinson
• Lila by Marilynne Robinson
• Perdido Street Station by China Miéville
• The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

* For special mention, I have to include Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. It was such a fun, fun read that I can still picture it in my head.

According to my Goodreads Stats, I've read 41 books for the last six months, which put me ahead of my reading plan. Yay! So, I'm going to take it a little slow and give attention to some promised ARC reviews this July. I'm not going to post the list here since most of the publishers asked that all reviews should be scheduled to run after the publication date. The list is not exactly a secret, that is, if you are checking my current reads, every now and then. *wink *wink

The Quiet American is TFG's book for the month. We're having our online discussion here and will meet-up on July 25th, at Ba Noi's Vietnamese Cuisine in Makati, for the face-to-face discussion. Come join us. 

Happy July, everyone!  Update me on your reading list, okay?

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