A SEPARATE PEACE

Scott Snively tackles Knowles's famous novel about rivalries and relationships at the fictional Devon School, a prep school for boys, during WWII. The story is told from the point of view of Gene, a man looking back on his last year at Devon. Like Gene himself, Snively's narration is sometimes wistful, sometimes regretful, sometimes hesitant. Most of the performance is subdued, with subtle distinctions in the voices of the major characters. Snively does an excellent job conveying emotions in scenes of conflict. He ably conveys anger and sadness with changes in pitch and a few well-placed shouts in a way that sounds genuine, never forced. This is an excellent treatment of a modern classic. A.F. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 02]