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jmiae 's review for:
A Separate Peace
by John Knowles
If I wanted to spend the time picking apart the theme of war that's imbedded in this book, I might be able to understand better why it's considered a classic in American young adult fiction.
As it is, this was a blend of A Scent of a Woman, Dead Poet's Society and Catch-22. Rich white boys in a private boarding school plus World War II. It's easy to feel sympathetic and commiserate with the characters when they are isolated in their school environment, surrounded only by each other and old, white, male educators who are referred to as masters rather than teachers, etc. Perhaps in that sense, A Scent of a Woman was a better version of this story, because at least Charlie came from a middle class background and broken home life, and he meets a veteran who lives a sad and lonely life and the viewer gets the benefit of the wider context of how the characters fit within society. In this case, as much as the reader is compelled to love Phineas and feel pity for Gene, I never felt entirely connected to the characters or the story.
As it is, this was a blend of A Scent of a Woman, Dead Poet's Society and Catch-22. Rich white boys in a private boarding school plus World War II. It's easy to feel sympathetic and commiserate with the characters when they are isolated in their school environment, surrounded only by each other and old, white, male educators who are referred to as masters rather than teachers, etc. Perhaps in that sense, A Scent of a Woman was a better version of this story, because at least Charlie came from a middle class background and broken home life, and he meets a veteran who lives a sad and lonely life and the viewer gets the benefit of the wider context of how the characters fit within society. In this case, as much as the reader is compelled to love Phineas and feel pity for Gene, I never felt entirely connected to the characters or the story.