The "Vibe" Over the Plot
If your teenager is looking for a fast-paced thriller or a plot-heavy romance where things "happen" every five minutes, they might find this book boring. Benjamin Alire Sáenz isn't interested in a race to the finish line. This is a story that breathes. It lives in the quiet moments—driving a truck through the desert, sitting by a pool, or the awkward, heavy silences between a father and son.
It’s the ultimate "vibes" book, but in a way that feels earned. It captures that specific, agonizing teenage feeling that the world is huge and you are very small, yet everything you feel is massive. If your kid is into reads that feel like 2am deep talks, this is the gold standard.
The Reading Level "Trap"
There is a weird technical quirk with this book: it has an Accelerated Reader (AR) level of 2.9. In school-speak, that means a second grader could technically decode the sentences. This is a massive red flag for parents of younger kids. Just because an eight-year-old can read the words doesn't mean they should read this book.
The simplicity of the prose is a stylistic choice, not a reflection of the target audience. The themes—coming out, the trauma of a brother in prison, and a brief but brutal scene of hate-crime violence—are firmly for the 14+ crowd. On the flip side, this makes it a "cheat code" for older teens who struggle with reading or hate dense, academic language. It offers sophisticated, coming-of-age stories without the barrier of a 600-page "classic."
A Better Blueprint for Dads
One of the most refreshing things here is the portrayal of the fathers. In so many YA novels, parents are either invisible, dead, or villains. Here, Ari’s father is a Vietnam vet struggling with his own silence, yet the book works hard to show a path toward positive male role models who are allowed to be vulnerable.
The relationship between Ari and his dad is just as central as the romance with Dante. It’s about how men in a family—specifically a Mexican-American family—navigate secrets and trauma. It’s a great pick if you’re looking for books about dads that move past the "tough guy" stereotype and show what it looks like for a father to actually see his son.
If Your Teen Liked "The Fault in Our Stars"
This is a natural next step for John Green fans. It has that same "philosophical teenager" energy, but it feels more grounded in culture and identity. While Green’s characters often talk like 40-year-old professors, Ari and Dante feel like actual kids trying to find the words for things they don't quite understand yet.
If they’ve already finished the book, the movie version starring Max Pelayo and Eva Longoria is a solid follow-up. It’s a rare case where the adaptation actually keeps the lyrical soul of the source material intact. For families looking for Latino LGBTQ+ movies and shows, starting with the book and moving to the film is a great way to talk about how representation changes across different media.
