Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe is a young adult novel by American author Benjamin Alire Sáenz, published on February 21st 2012. It is set in El Paso, Texas in 1987 and follows two Mexican-American boys, Aristotle "Ari" Mendoza and Dante Quintana.

Synopsis
Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

The Different Rules of Summer
Angel Aristotle "Ari" Medoza is bored out of his mind so he decides to take a dip in the municipal swimming pool one summer day. Miserable and friendless, Ari has two sisters who are much older and have moved on from the house and him, it seems. His older brother Bernardo is an off limits topic, and to Ari, it appears everyone is acting as if he is dead. Ari's father is still war-torn, experiencing intense PSTD from his time serving in Vietnam.

At the swimming pool, Ari is confronted by Dante Quintana, who offers to teach Ari to swim. They soon form a friendship that is as thick as thieves and they learn so much from each other through out the course of the novel. Ari adores Dante's swimming abillites as well as unpresidented sincerity. He learns of poetry and literature and about Dante's insecurity toward his Mexican identity, and (most importantly) Dante's extreme loathing to shoes. Sam and Soledad are a strict juxtaposition to Ari's parents, to whom he feels so isolated and distant.

One afternoon, the boys see some children shooting birds with a BB gun. Dante and Ari confront them, take away the gun and bury the sparrow the children shot.