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This story is absolute perfection. It's not every day you read a book and love it this much from the very first word to the very last period.

Aristotle (Ari) and Dante, both somewhat solitary teenagers, meet at a swimming pool and strike up a conversation. They bond over their classical names and soon forge a friendship.

“We laughed again. We couldn’t stop. I wondered what it was we were laughing about. Was it just our names? Were we laughing because we were relieved? Were we happy?��

Ari's never had that much in common with boys his age, and his connection to Dante is refreshing. Ari is fascinated by Dante's sincerity, intelligence, and self-confidence. Dante offers to teach Ari how to swim, and over the course of the summer, the two become inseparable, discussing literature, poetry, and well... the secrets of the universe.

“I had a feeling there was something wrong with me. I guess I was a mystery even to myself... I had been trying to figure out the secrets of the universe, the secrets of my own body, of my own heart. All of the answers had always been so close and yet I had always fought them without even knowing it. From the minute I'd met Dante, I had fallen in love with him. I just didn't let myself know it, think it, feel it. My father was right.��

I loved how Ari's parents outed him TO HIM. Dante's parents are amazing as well. His entire family hugs and kisses each other all the time, even his Dad hugs and kisses him. It's so comforting to read a story about functioning, loving families for a change. This story is absolutely beautiful.