Peace Breaks Out (1981) by John Knowles is a compelling companion novel to his celebrated classic, A Separate Peace. Set in the same fictional Devon School, a New Hampshire boys' boarding school, the story unfolds in the aftermath of World War II. Pete Hallam, a war-weary veteran and 1937 Devon alumnus, returns to teach American history and coach athletics, seeking solace and renewal. Instead, he confronts unresolved tensions as two brilliant but antagonistic students, Wexford and Eric Hochschwender, clash in a rivalry steeped in ideology, privilege, and the lingering shadows of war. The novel explores themes of betrayal, war, and human frailty through irony and rich character dynamics. Wexford, a sociopathic editor with a fear of latent American fascism, orchestrates a campaign of harassment against Hochschwender, a neo-fascist outsider of German descent. Their escalating conflict pulls the school community into a frenzy of misplaced patriotism and mob mentality, culminating in tragedy when Hochschwender dies of a heart attack amid relentless persecution. Hallam, scarred by personal loss and the horrors of war, struggles to impart wisdom to his students, only to witness how easily they fall prey to the very forces WWII sought to destroy. Knowles masterfully blends prep school life with the psychological and moral complexities of postwar America, crafting a thought-provoking narrative about identity, ideology, and the cyclical nature of human conflict.
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