“Dead Poets Society” Book Review

Presley Luther, MVC Writer

“We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for,” says John Keating in “Dead Poets Society.”

This book is the novelization of the screenplay written by N.H Klienbaum. The “Dead Poets Society” is arguably one of the best teen drama books. “The Dead Poets Society” follows Todd Anderson and his friends on their adventures on bringing back the Dead Poets Society, a secret club that their poetry teacher, Mr. Keating, used to be a part of. The book follows the boy’s adventures in the club, and the adventures with their teacher Mr. Keating. One thing that makes this book so great is Mr. Keating himself.

 Mr. Keating gave inspiration to not only the boys, but everyone else who read the book. His odd teaching methods and passionate attitude makes the readers feel as if they are part of the story themselves. Mr. Keating inspired each and every one of his students to do what they loved. Neil Perry was one of those students, but unfortunately, his family did not agree with his dreams of being an actor. Neil’s parents pulled him out of school and straight into military school.

This book can be quite thrilling in some parts with unexpected events. The book and movie can really give readers another outlook on life in an amazing way. This book could be compared to “The Secret History” written by Donna Tart and “The Song of Achilles” written by Madeline Miller. Both the books just mentioned have a preppy type feel to them and all the books mentioned all follow the lives of teenagers who want to live an extraordinary life.

 “The Dead Poets Society” movie is rated PG-13 and was written for teens ages 15-18. This book was an amazing read, overall I would give the book a 5/5. To anyone who is looking for a new book to read, the “Dead Poets Society” is an amazing choice.