poeyoep 's review for:

A Separate Peace by John Knowles

3.5

dark emotional inspiring lighthearted sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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Sad boy books about fear of war in an isolated relatively tranquil life of a boarding school students. It's very specific to the zeitgeist of world war era that I appreciate as someone who does not like to read non-fictional war books. This book also had a theme I enjoyed such was found in previous books in this journal: all consuming jealousy. But instead of in regards of economy class, it is a very simple school boy jealousy towards his fellow friend in capability. The fervent desire to be equal to the object of admiration, the numbing battle that was held only inside one's head, juvenile emotions that were held inside one's heart without a sufficient output that ended in missery on both sides.

It is about a bright life ended too early. A young tragic non-glorious death to a person who shines so blindingly that it became the initial cause for his death. This book sad.

It was an insult to the class, and Finny had tremendous loyalty to the class, as he did to any group he belonged to, beginning with him and me and radiating outward past the limits of humanity toward spirits and clouds and stars.

He drew me increasingly away from the Butt Room crowd, away from Brinker and Chet and all other friends, into a world inhabited by just himself and me, where there was no war at all, just Phineas and me alone among all the people of the world, training for the Olympics of 1944.