This book was given to me by a friend who also sent me the audiobook narrated by Lin Manuel Miranda. And what a treat it was to read along to Lin's narration!

Though it took me a while to get into this, I really enjoyed the book! I enjoyed it so much that I read it in one day. I thought that the story was beautifully written and I found myself marking so many passages and quotes (below).

The story itself was about two boys trying to find their places in the world while dealing with adolescence and some issues at home. The storyline was slow-paced but in a really good way.

I loved the tone of the book, though there were some sad/scary bits, the overall story was very happy and easy going. I adored all of the main characters and the friendship between the two boys was absolutely lovely.

I would highly recommend this book.

*POTENTIAL SPOILERS BELOW*

My favorite lines and passages:
"Poetry," he said. "It won't kill you."
"What if it does? Boy Dies of Boredom While Reading Poetry."
He tried not to laugh, but he wasn't good at controlling all the laughter that lived inside of him.

Words were different when they lived inside of you.

Through that telescope, the world was closer and larger than I'd ever imagined. And it was all so beautiful and overwhelming and - I don't know- it made me aware that there was something inside of me that mattered.

I could hear him talking to my mother. Dante never had any trouble starting up conversations. He was probably telling my mom his life story.

But the worst part was that those words were living inside me. And they were leaking out of me. Words were not things you could control. Not always.

It was so beautiful and scary, I wondered about the science of storms and how sometimes it seemed that a storm wanted to break the world and how the world refused to break.

"Boring game, Dante. Are we interviewing each other?"
"Something like that."
"What position am I applying for?"
"Best friend."
"I thought I already had the job."
"Don't be so sure, you arrogant son of a bitch."

He smiled and then, I don't know, there was this look on his face and it was so hard to tell what he was thinking for feeling, which was strange because Dante's face was a book that the whole world could read.

I felt like a soccer ball after a game.

My mother and father held hands. I wondered what that was like, to hold someone's hand. I bet you could sometimes find all of the mysteries of the universe in someone's hand.

The problem with trying hard not to think about something was that you thought about it even more.

"It if matters, then it matters."

One of the secrets of the universe was that our instincts were sometimes stronger than our minds.

Another secret of the universe: Sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere. The clearest summer morning could end in a downpour. Could end in lightning and thunder.

To be careful with people and with words was a rare and beautiful thing.