Book Review: Dead Poets Society

By Nancy H. Kleinbaum 

3 Stars

Dead Poets Society is a famous novel and movie that follows a young group of boys who attend Welton Academy, a prestigious boarding school. The boys are introduced to their new English teacher, John Keating who inspires them in many different ways. He also inspired them to bring back the Dead Poets Society club, in which they gather to read poetry in a cave outside of the school grounds. With the high standards and strict rules, the parents of these boys set, they have not got to experience many things they are passionate about. This all changes upon the arrival of Mr. Keating.
 

I enjoyed this book for the most part, although I did find that since it is a fairly short book, it moved very quickly and seemed a bit rushed in developing the plot, as well as the connection to the characters. I do think this can be seen as an inspiring novel as a prevalent phrase they use is "carpe diem," meaning "seize the day." The characters carry this quote with them to branch out and do spontaneous things, which can also inspire the readers to do so. I think I also liked this book because it did justice to poetry as a whole. There is also an aspect of realness to it, as there are raw scenes that are very realistic that people may be able to connect or relate to. At the end of the book, the impact Mr. Keating had on his students as well as the readers is evident. Overall, I did enjoy reading this book, although I do wish it was a bit longer so that we could form a better connection with the characters throughout, as well as have more detailed scenes that would take a bit longer to develop. 

Reviewed by Elaisa P.

View in Library Catalogue: DVD