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School Library Journal
Starred Review on February 1, 2012 | Grades 5-up
Gr 9 Up—In the summer of 1987 in El Paso, TX, two 15-year-old loners meet when Dante offers to teach Ari to swim, and they have a laugh over their unusual names. Though polar opposites in most aspects other than age and Mexican heritage, the teens form an instant bond and become inseparable. This poetic novel takes Ari, brooding and quiet, and with a brother in prison, and Dante, open and intellectual, throu...Log In or Sign Up to Read More
Horn Book Magazine
Reviewed on February 1, 2012
Aristotle -- Ari for short -- meets Dante at the pool one summer day in 1987, and the two boys quickly strike up a friendship that will change their lives in ways both subtle and profound. Ari admires Dante's gregarious personality, his intellectual curiosity, and his close bond with his parents, especially his father. In contrast, Ari's own father, a Vietnam vet, remains aloof, damaged by his experience of war, and both parents refuse to dis...Log In or Sign Up to Read More
Horn Book Guide
Reviewed on January 1, 2012
Two boys, Ari and Dante, strike up a friendship that will change their lives in ways both subtle and profound. When Ari saves Da...Log In or Sign Up to Read More