Rating: 
Summary: Seperate Peace
Review: Separate Peace
By: Chris Qualheim
October 5th, 2001
English/ Mr. Powell
9th grade/ Brookwood SchoolI found that in reading A Separate Peace that I did not know as much about what the kids would go through before they knew they were going to have to go off to war to fight for there country. I think that John Knowles did a magnificant job in writing this novel. Over the summer I would enjoy lying down and opening this book every time. One of the main reasons I liked this book is because it had lots of adventure for a war book. For example, when Gene jounces the limb and makes Finny fall out of the tree. It stirs up a big conflict that eventually ends in death. Another example of the adventure I liked was when Gene and Quakenbush get into their fight and they fall into the Nagaumset River and Gene says that he has just had a reverse baptism. Another reason why I enjoyed this book was because it pointed out to me that there is good and evil inside of everyone and that the evil comes from jealousy and hatred and envy that is buried deep inside the heart. Finally the last reason why I liked this book was because it shows that true friends can forgive each other and push the hatred and envy aside and just let it be. For example everyone is telling Finny that Gene purposely jounced the limb, but Finny has it set in his mind that Gene did not jounce the limb purposely and that he must have just lost his balance. Even when Gene tells Finny to his face that he jounced the limb Finny doesn't even believe Gene. So it goes to show that Finny is a true friend to Gene and he can forgive him for his mistake. So that is why I liked the book so much.
Rating:
Summary: Thoughts on this novel from a high schooler's point of view
Review: The novel A Separate Peace by John Knowles is a great story about friendship in a time of war. The setting is a boarding school for boys in New Hampshire named Devon. The two main characters, Gene and Finny, are enjoying a summer and then school year of innocence, while the rest of the country is off at war against Germany, Japan, and Italy (World War II). However, a different kind of war creeps silently into Devon when Gene becomes jealous of Finny, his best friend, and wrongfully suspects him of deliberately wrecking his grades. Finally, after an epiphany, Gene comes to the truth about how Finny is just too good a person, and the battle was all in Gene's head. That night, the boys are making a midnight jump from a mammoth tree near the river, when Gene subconsciously "jounces" the limb causing Finny to fall and shatter his leg. This is the end of Finny's brilliant athletic career. The remainder of the story discusses Gene's inner examination of his evil heart and his becoming more mature as he takes responsibility for his actions.
All of the characters in the story are extremely plausible and well rounded. Gene especially, has mental battles with his evil heart and spends much of his free time pondering Finny's motives. Finny is a very idealistic character with a kind heart and innocent mind. Indirectly, this innocence leads to his death, as he wasn't able to survive the "war". The theme can be interpreted many ways but all are very complex and involve the loss of innocence and the potential for evil in the human heart. The greatest battles against evil are those fought in the human mind.
I felt that this story moved at a moderate pace, although some parts were bogged down with description. There is a great deal of symbolism in this story concerning a war motif and a Garden of Eden motif. This is a good story on its own, but is much more interesting and puzzling when read between the lines when you take the symbolism into account.
John Knowles did an excellent job on this novel, but I felt that one thing could be changed. The epilogue summarizes the remainder of Gene's life and war experiences in only a few sentences. This could have been explored further.
Rating: 
Summary: very good book if you understand it
Review: I had to read this book last year for English (10th grade) and i had a very good teacher and she explained all the allusions and symbolism and it's just so cool how much stuff you can find in there! I think that if I would have read the book on my own i wouldn't have liked it as much as i did. I recoment this book for anyone, but if you're my age and want to read it on your own, i suggest you stop every once in a while and think about the things the characters are feeling and going through and the things aroudn them, like the school, and descriptions. In this book, if Knowles spends some time describing something, that means that it is important to the book.
bottom line: READ THIS BOOK!
Rating:
Summary: Phenominal Writing
Review: I read "A Separate Peace" in high school. This book carries many life lessons we could all relate to. The writings of knowles create an imagery unsurpassed by any author writing a precise story of it's kind. The novel is so short and such an easy read. Yet, when I read it again and again, I still find that there is more to experience. Males and females especially should experience this novel integrating the truest of friendships with the backdrop of war. Finny is the guy we hate to love yet always do, and Gene is the nice guy with feelings unimagineable.
Rating:
Summary: The evils of youth
Review: Like William Gerald Goling or J.D. Salinger, John Knowles has used mere boys to explore serious themes in this classic novel. Gene, an isolated honor student forges a friendship with his roomate, the sly, charismatic Phineas. Although they are very different, a rivalry and subconscious spite developes between the boys until a boiling point reaches in Gene, causing an action he will be analyzing for the rest of his life. The backdrop of WWII America is perfect for a book which so subtely explores the themes of evil, jealousy and guilt.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic that will live on forever
Review: The first time I read A Separate Peace, I loved it. Now that I've read it for a second time, I understand it. Through the escapades of Gene and Finny, Knowles shows the hope, fear, uncertainty, and jealousy that is adolescence. I know I truly love a book if I fall in love with the main character, and fall in love with Finny I did. Knowles created a character so real, so vivid and so wonderful, I would wonder if anyone didn't love him. Nestled amongst the beautiful prose and realistic dialogue rests a story that cuts straight to the core--a story of friendship, pain, and growing up.
Rating:
Summary: A Favorite
Review: I read this book initailly because it took place very near to my home. I was so glad that I did read it. This book is deeper than a friendship between 2 friends. It is a story of adolecents growing up and not knowing what may come next, also being scared of what may come.
Rating: 
Summary: A Seperate Peace
Review: The novel, A Separate Peace, is a book with only a mediocre amount of suspense, and a star rating of three, was really a fairly good read. Many of my friends said that this book was the biggest waste of vocabulary and Latin and Greek classical roots. I, however, have a different opinion. After reading this book twice, I may conclude that it is a well written novel that anyone over the age of 10 could enjoy. It is about friendship and the stages and phases that young adults pass through. As if being a teenager wasn't enough, these boys had the pressure of having to fight in the war at an extremely young age! If you enjoy books that have a mix of tragedy, suspense, and a book about trust, this is the book for you.-
Rating:
Summary: BEAUTIFUL
Review: I read this book for a high school honors English class last year. I remember another girl mentioning how she did the same but they all hated the book. Well, I guess it's a book that some love and some hate. But I think it was beautifully written and is one of my favorites. I love the way the author described feelings and even scenery. He made it seem like a movie that you didn't want to end. I could never write such a wonderful book and I'm glad I had the delight of reading it. I would reccomend it to anyone(even those who aren't taking it for English):) I even made my Mom and friends read it.
Rating: 
Summary: boring book
Review: this book is really boring but if you like analyzing stuff and enjoy reading about competition between boys i would recommend it
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