John Knowles's a Separate Peace (Barron's Book Notes) [Paperback]

John Knowles (Author), Neil Baldwin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1984 | Series: Barron's Book Notes

A guide to reading "A Separate Peace" with a critical and appreciative mind. Includes background on the author's life and times, sample tests, term paper suggestions, and a reading list.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Barrons Educational Series Inc (October 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812034414
• ISBN-13: 978-0812034417
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #800,941 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best books I've ever read. Deeply moving., July 24, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (United States Army in Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: John Knowles's a Separate Peace (Barron's Book Notes) (Paperback)

I read A Separate Peace when I was in eigth grade. It touched me then, and now -- nearly twenty years later -- it is still one of my annual reads. The characters of Gene and Phineas are so well-developed that you feel you know these two boys and the special relationship they share. Despite the terrible thing Gene does to Finny, it is virtually impossible to dislike Gene, just as it is impossible to dislike Finny. If you're looking for cars exploding, guns blazing, and curse words every other page, the book is not for you. However, if you're trying to take a realistic peek into the workings of the adolescent male mind in 1942, then you would not want to miss this book. It is truly tragic, and I recall twenty years ago that when I read the words, "Your friend is dead" from the novel, I had to put it down and did not read the last few pages for nearly two weeks. It's a sensitive subject addressed in a sensitive manner.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Separate Peace, December 3, 2002

By 

Robert Harding (Reno, NV USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: John Knowles's a Separate Peace (Barron's Book Notes) (Paperback)

John Knowles' A Separate Peace is a great book about trust, betrayal, friendship, and finding your true identity. The book, set in 1942, at the beginning of WWII for America, shows a great deal about trust and friendship at that time. Through out the book we see the actions of two friends and how one trust the other in such a great way that he forgives the other for literally ruining his life ( Finny forgiving Gene for making him fall from the tree ). It really shows the bond that friendship meant back in the early forties. Also there is a lot of betrayal and distrust in the story. For example Gene starts to get it in his head that Finny and him are in this competition and it drives him so far into anger that he hurts the person who really cared and trusted him. This shows how the human heart is naturally distrustful, and shows how much humans read on into something farther then needed. This book is a very provocative example of the stages that people go through to get to who they truly are, their true identity.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A deep message, November 22, 2002

By 

The separators (Monterrey, México) - See all my reviews

This review is from: John Knowles's a Separate Peace (Barron's Book Notes) (Paperback)

A Separate Peace is a book with a deep message for all the people about the real meaning of friendship, values and consequences of the World War II in American teenagers. It is easy to read, because Knowles places the time and settings with a particularity as he knows how to do.It is sad and dramatic story, however you learn the real meaning of FORGIVENESS with Finny and Gene friendship. We really recommend the book, but it is necessary to get time and patience for a good comprehension of the message that Knowles wants to transmit it. Give a chance and create your own opinion about the book. We give it four stars, thanks Mr. DeMaria!