I had to give myself some space from this novel after I finished it because I was so floored. I’m still not sure I can capture exactly how it made me feel or how much I loved it.

Aristotle, or Ari, is angsty and confused. He’s angry that his parents won’t talk to him about his brother, who’s in prison. He’s also a loner, never feeling like he quite fits in with other boys. Dante is a brilliant boy who tries to look on the brighter side of life. The two seem to have nothing in common, but learn a lot about themselves through their friendship. Ari and Dante are the kinds of characters that feel very real and jump off the page, but you would be hard-pressed to find real people like them. I loved the literary references, commentaries on different aspects of life, and their parents. It’s so easy to find YA books with parents who are either never around or are unsupportive. Ari and Dante have wonderful parents who love them, talk to them, and want them to be happy. I wish everyone could have parents like them. The writing was so beautiful that I immediately wanted to read everything Saenz has ever written. I liked that the LGBT elements weren’t of the in-your-face variety. It’s just genuine. I also loved their struggle with where they stand as Americans and Mexicans. It was so refreshing to read about these topics when they’re handled subtly and well. This book definitely deserves all of the acclaim and awards. The narration was good, but I had to let it grow on me. I wasn’t sure about his voice in the beginning. After listening to nearly the entire book in one sitting, his voices became the characters’ voices to me. I’m already re-reading this one in print to pick up on any quotes I might want to tag and I can still hear the narrator’s voices in my head.

Go read this book now!

Disclosure: I received this audiobook from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Book Information

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
by Benjamin Alire Saenz, read by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Simon & Schuster Audio, 2013
Unabridged Audio CDs, 7.5 hours
ISBN 9781442366411

Original content from Owl Tell You About It

It’s 1960 in Hamburg, Germany and there aren’t many people who have heard of The Beatles yet. Astrid Kirchherr’s ex-boyfriend drags her to a seedy club just to see them. She’s immediately drawn to them, particularly Stuart. What follows is a melancholy love story. I’m sure this story is nothing new to well-researched Beatles fans. It’s just a new way of telling it. Bellstorf does a fantastic job weaving song lyrics throughout this book, and I did feel a connection to the Astrid and Stuart. The art, however, didn’t match up for me. It was mostly frames of black turtlenecks, dangling cigarettes, and broody stares. He’s certainly talented; I just wanted a little more variety. The art never felt like it was helping to tell the story.

I would have preferred to read this novel in narrative form. Still, if you’re looking for some material on The Beatles in their early years, you might want to check this out.

Disclosure: I borrowed this book from my professor.

Book Information

Baby’s in Black: Astrid Kirchherr, Stuart Sutcliffe, and The Beatles in Hamburg
by Arne Bellstorf
First Second, 2012
Hardcover, 208 pages
ISBN 9781596437715

Original content from Owl Tell You About It

This is a weekly round that includes info about my life, the blog, my reading, bookish news, and awesome blog posts I read. It’s inspired by the many weekly posts out there such as It’s Monday! What are you reading?,Sunday Post, and Clock Rewinders.

…about my life

This was a pretty busy week, a little busier than I expected. Ben graduated from college Friday so his family came into town Thursday night. We spent the beginning of the week preparing for them to be here, so picking up and giving the apartment a good clean. We went out to a nice dinner Thursday night, where I had the best salmon I’ve ever had in my life. Ben graduated Friday and we went to an early dinner of Mexican afterwards. It’s actually the same restaurant we went to after my graduation. Then we just hung out his family for a few hours, and they headed out yesterday morning. Yesterday was my nephew’s birthday so we drove down to my brother’s to celebrate. It was a family-filled weekend for sure. Here’s a picture of Ben and I after his graduation. I’m so pale!

…about my blog

Last week I got a little distracted with Ben’s graduation so I didn’t get as much on the blog as I had planned. I reviewed Black Bird vol. 13 for Manga Mondays, and “A Family Illness” for Short Story Saturday. I also posed my Top Ten Books Dealing With Tough Topics and my list for The Classics Spin. I promise more reviews and posts this week!

…about my reading

It seems like I got more reading done the week before Bout of Books, but oh well. I’ve been preoccupied. This week I read several Candlewick picture books and Blush by Lauren Jameson, which I may review here. I haven’t decided yet. I’m still reading Iinsomnia, but I intend to finish that today. I also hope to read Cut and Black Bird vol. 14 today. I’ve also been re-reading The Angel. So, I started The Darkest Minds on audio earlier this week, but I couldn’t get into it so I quit listening. Should I come back to it later or just let it go? I also never got into The Forgotten Garden. I’ve been so terrible with book club lately. We’re about to try something new though, so maybe I’ll be able to read the book this time.

…about some (bookish) news and articles

The 2013 Children’s Choice Book Awards have been announced, and The Fault in Our Stars made it on the list.

Check out the 2013 Innovation in Reading Prize. I want a Little Free Library here.

Oh, and please ignore that link last week about Microsoft buying Nook Media. That’s not really happening.

Check out Richard Tuttle’s awesome bindings for classics. I want one of these!

I enjoyed this article about the social aspects of reading discussed at the CBC Forum.

…about some cool blog posts

Jamie at The Perpetual Page-Turner confesses that she does some things that make book lovers cringe.

Ginger at GReads writes about settings.

Asti at A Bookish Heart writes about illustrated YA books.

Amanda at On a Book Bender ask us to recommend some audiobooks. We all know how much I love audiobooks.

Rachel at Parajunkee’s View posts The Adventures of Evil Book Blogger Ep. 1. Love it!

…about book and blog events

You still have a little time to make your list for The Classics Spin.

Sign up for next month’s The Beats of Summer reading event.

Original content from Owl Tell You About It

I missed the last spin and I’ve really fallen behind with my classics club list so I thought I should participate in this one. I didn’t really pick from every category. I basically picked a few I’m dreading and mostly books that I already have copies of on my shelf. Wish me luck! You can read more about the classics spin at The Classics Club Blog.

1. Atwood, Margaret: A Handmaid’s Tale
2. Baldwin, James: Giovanni’s Room
3. Bronte, Charlotte: Vilette
4. Burnett, Frances Hodgson: A Little Princess
5. Carroll, Lewis: Through the Looking Glass
6. Dante: Inferno
7. Dickens, Charles: A Tale of Two Cities
8. Faulkner, William: The Sound and the Fury
9. Fitzgerald, F. Scott: This Side of Paradise
10. Gaskell, Elizabeth: Wives & Daughters
11. Hardy: Thomas: Tess of the D’Urbervilles
12. Hesse, Hermann: Steppenwolf
13. Hugo, Victor: The Hunchback of Notre Dame
14. Kerouac, Jack: On the Road
15. Milton, John: Paradise Lost
16. Montgomery, L.M.: Anne of Green Gables
17. Pyle, Howard: The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
18. Salinger, J.D.: The Catcher in the Rye
19. Salten, Felix: Bambi
20. Wilde, Oscar: The Importance of Being Earnest

Original content from Owl Tell You About It

Necessary Noise

I want to take a moment to explain this anthology a bit, as Michael Cart does in his introduction. When we think of family, sometimes our view is skewed by what we have or what we think is normal. Family used to mean something very different to most people: a husband, a wife, 2.5 children, and a dog. In Necessary Noise, this idea of family is thrown out to make room for the reality of families today, whether that means a single parent family, a child with homosexual parents, or a family found in friends. Families come in different shapes and sizes and this book does its best to celebrate that.

Story: “A Family Illness”
Author: Joyce Carol Thomas
Anthology: Necessary Noise: stories about our families as they really are

Summary: This is a dialogue between mother and son about his mental illness.

My thoughts: What a haunting story! Most of it keeps a good pace and sense of suspense. It’s what I think any good short story needs. There’s full character development, which is crucial in so few pages. The ending, however, felt too much like an ad for schizophrenia awareness and I the pop-culture references are dated. I think those would hit the mark with the intended audience, unless they had a thing for 80s music. Still, it’s a powerful story and great abstract prose.

Disclosure: I borrowed this book from the library.

Book Information

Joanna Cotler Books, 2003
Hardcover, $15.99
ISBN 9780060274993

Also in this series

Hardware
Siskiyou Sloan and the Eye of the Giraffe
Necessary Noise
The Throwaway
Visit
A Woman’s Touch
Sailing Away
Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde
Snowbound

Original content from Owl Tell You About It