A Separate Peace by John Knowles was on a recommended reading list I looked at recently, so I picked it up. The back cover gave rave reviews. I have to say that the book was exceptionally well written. I can only aspire to be able to paint such vivid landscapes with words like Knowles does in this book. The descriptions were impeccable. Often the action, though, would come so abruptly that I would have to reread a paragraph or a few sentences to be sure something so dramatic could happen in such a little space. The foreshadowing was interesting, though it made me feel a bit anxious through most of the book.
The story is about a young man in college during WWII and his odd relationship with his roommate. Since I have often been curious to know how a man thinks, I enjoyed stepping inside this young man's psyche for a while. Still, there were moments when I just couldn't understand his motives. At the end of chapter twelve, I admit that I broke down crying. I sort of knew what was bound to happen because of the foreshadowing from chapter one, but it still was upsetting. (I don't want to blow it for you if you haven't read it.) All in all it was an emotional story, but emotions I'm not accustomed to feeling. Maybe it's a boy book. This book is hard to rate. I want to give it 5 stars for the skill of the author. But it wasn't really very pleasant. At times when I was angry in the book I wanted to say I hated it and give it a one star, but I kept reading... I suppose to be able to invoke the emotions is power in a book. It really deserves much more than one star. I can see why it is a classic.
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