Read this when
A Separate Peace
He was your best friend and you were secretly competing with him. He wasn't. A Separate Peace is for anyone who still replays one moment. 🌳
Who it's for
Gene's retrospective confession lets readers who carry guilt from a teenage friendship see the tangle of admiration, envy and impulse from the inside, without a neat verdict about intent.
Feelings it meets
What it is
John Knowles's 1959 novel is narrated by Gene Forrester, who returns as an adult to Devon School fifteen years after graduating and recalls his time there during World War II. As a student, the studious Gene shares a room and an intense friendship with Phineas (Finny), a carefree, gifted athlete, and the two start a club whose members jump from a tree into the river.
Where to find it
In print (Scribner) and widely available in school and public libraries (Libby/Hoopla); audiobook available. Not public domain.
Before you start
Heads up: A friend's injury and death.
Age: Ages 12+
Insist on yourself; never imitate.Ralph Waldo Emerson, Essays: First Series, “Self-Reliance”
