John Knowles (1) (1926–2001)
Author of A Separate Peace
For other authors named John Knowles, see the disambiguation page.
About the Author
John Knowles was born in Fairmont, W.Va., on September 16, 1926. He began prep school at Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire from 1942 to 1944 and was then inducted into the U.S. Army Air Corps. After World War II ended, he attended Yale University, graduating in 1949, and then worked as a show more reporter for the Hartford Courant. He eventually turned to freelance writing, often writing articles about travel. This took him to Europe where he spent much of the 1950s. In addition to this writing, he served as editor for Holiday magazine for a time. A Separate Peace, his first novel, was published in 1959 in England and the United States. Set in a prep school much like Exeter, the novel takes place during World War II and is about the impact of the war on young men on the homefront; the troubled relationship of the two main characters symbolizes the fear and suspicion that can lead to war between nations. Knowles received the William Faulkner Foundation Award for a First Novel and the Independent School Education Board Award. A Separate Peace continues to be one of the most widely read novels in high schools and colleges. Knowles's subsequent novels include Morning in Antibes (1962), A Vein of Riches (1978), which is set in his native West Virginia, and Peace Breaks Out (1981) which returns to the setting of A Separate Peace. He also wrote a non-fiction book, Double Vision: American Thoughts Abroad (1964). He remains best known, however, for his first novel. John Knowles has lived on Long Island, N.Y. since the early 1960s. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Wikipedia
Series
Works by John Knowles
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Knowles, John
- Birthdate
- 1926-09-16
- Date of death
- 2001-11-29
- Gender
- male
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Fairmont, West Virginia, USA
- Place of death
- Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA
- Places of residence
- Fairmont, West Virginia, USA
Southampton, New York, USA
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA - Education
- Yale College (AB|1949)
Phillips Exeter Academy - Occupations
- novelist
short-story writer
travel writer
journalist
editor
professor - Organizations
- Florida Atlantic University
University of North Carolina
Princeton University
Holiday
Hartford Courant
United States Army Air Forces (WWII) - Awards and honors
- William Faulkner Award (1961)
National Institute of Arts and Letters Rosenthal Award (1961)
Members
Reviews
I think a lot of people read this in high school, but I didn't. I decided to pick it up because I kept seeing it everywhere. My impressions:
1. There are almost no females in it. The lack of girls and the lack of interest in girls among these 16- to 18-year-old guys, made me think that the two main characters were in love with each other, which is probably just because I minored in gender studies. But, really, the total lack of anything sexual was an interesting choice.
2. This is a deep, dark book about living in wartime. I was reminded of how little the Iraq war affected my time in college compared to how tremendously WWII affected the boys at the boarding school in the story.
3. Obviously, this is also a story about the psychology of adolescence, particularly among young men, particularly in a competitive and isolated environment. The way they talked was so old-fashioned, though, that I kept picturing them as much younger, like 12 or 13.
4. How reliable of a narrator is Gene? Can Finny really be so perfect? I went back and forth on this. I kind of hated Gene, but I also felt so sorry for him.
5. Overall, a really fascinating book that I'm sorry to read all by myself with no professor to guide a discussion.… (more)
1. There are almost no females in it. The lack of girls and the lack of interest in girls among these 16- to 18-year-old guys, made me think that the two main characters were in love with each other, which is probably just because I minored in gender studies. But, really, the total lack of anything sexual was an interesting choice.
2. This is a deep, dark book about living in wartime. I was reminded of how little the Iraq war affected my time in college compared to how tremendously WWII affected the boys at the boarding school in the story.
3. Obviously, this is also a story about the psychology of adolescence, particularly among young men, particularly in a competitive and isolated environment. The way they talked was so old-fashioned, though, that I kept picturing them as much younger, like 12 or 13.
4. How reliable of a narrator is Gene? Can Finny really be so perfect? I went back and forth on this. I kind of hated Gene, but I also felt so sorry for him.
5. Overall, a really fascinating book that I'm sorry to read all by myself with no professor to guide a discussion.… (more)
The book tells the story of boys at a boarding school in New Hampshire during 1942-43. The heart of the book is the relationships between the various boys at the school. It is primarily about the protagonist, Gene, and his friend Phineas, their friendship and their rivalry. But the war is an ever present background, which eventually intrudes in the story when one student leaves to enlist, and suffers a mental breakdown as a result, before he is ever sent overseas to fight. There is a surprising plot twist at the end.
Overall, this is a sad story, and I have mixed feelings about it.… (more)
Overall, this is a sad story, and I have mixed feelings about it.… (more)
Lists
AP Lit (1)
Five star books (1)
Overdue Podcast (1)
Nifty Fifties (1)
Teens (1)
Carole's List (1)
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 17
- Members
- 13,699
- Popularity
- #1,694
- Rating
- 3.6
- Reviews
- 204
- ISBNs
- 105
- Languages
- 5
- Favorited
- 1
I listened to it on audiobook, and the narrator was really good. The voice he used for each character fit their personality so well (in fact, you could guess their personalites by their voices alone).