A Separate Peace Audiobook By John Knowles cover art

A Separate Peace

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

A Separate Peace

By: John Knowles
Narrated by: Matthew Modine
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $8.06

Buy for $8.06

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

Gene was a lonely, introverted intellectual. Phineas was a handsome, taunting, daredevil athlete. What happened between them at school one summer during the early years of World War II is the subject of A Separate Peace. A great best seller for over 30 years - one of the most starkly moving parables ever written of the dark forces that brood over the tortured world of adolescence.

©1987 John Knowles;©1987 Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, A Division of Random House Inc. Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Superhero

People who viewed this also viewed...

A Separate Peace Audiobook By John Knowles cover art
A Separate Peace By: John Knowles
All stars
Most relevant  
This is a classic novel that is well narrated. I haven't read the full novel so not sure how good or bad it was abridged. Not having this knowledge, this version is well worth the time.

Classic Novel that is Well Read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
John Knowles' coming-of-age introspective is a well written tale that captures the turbulence, excitement and controversy of America's role in World War II, especially from the perspective of draft age young men. It also reveals the very personal interaction and peer rivalries of this group of elite boarding school boys.

Unfortunately, this classic has been undermined by the excessive use of unnecessary sound effects and distracting long musical interludes. Matthew Modine has turned in memorable performances as a movie actor, but his dull uninspired recitation of this story is like a summer camp letter to his mom. His monotone reading is only sparked when he stumbles over new parts of the story that he apparently had never read before undertaking this project.

A Great Story Spoiled

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Overall story is good. Recording quality is staticy. Then there's really jaring music that detracts from the reading and makes it hard to focus on the story. Not my favorite audio book reading. The narrator's voice was decent. But sometimes the accents were so muddled I couldn't tell who was talking.

Story itself is interesting. I can see why it's a classic. Glad I got the abridged version the full length one might be painful to muddle through.

The random music is jaring

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The narrator was very clear and crisp. One problem I had was knowing who was talking by the similar voices

Boring but had some plot twists

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Text does not compare to unabridged version. Rich language and character development are lost. Editors choice of cuts are curious.

too short

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
White privilege gives away to toxic masculinity, amidst New England style pathetic fallacy. Buckle in for emotionally stunted characters growing jaded.

At least it's short

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is an older version of the novel. If you are intending to use this for reading along with a current copy, check the version dates. There are more current releases of the audio on other web sites.

Old Verison

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.