

Loading... The Catcher in the Ryeby J. D. Salinger
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We read this long ago in class in high school, I think, or even earlier. A few days in the life of a teenaged boy. He is foul mouthed, conflicted about his life, impulsive, and perhaps even mentally troubled. He is also one of the most realistic characters to ever grace the pages of a book. It's like the author is following around a real person and recording his thoughts, words and actions. The only thing is - he is a teenaged boy and he is not easy to like. He makes horrible decisions. He is obsessed with the strangest things. And I got tired of him really quickly, so it was a good thing it was a short book. There can be no denying that the writing is wonderful. The first person narrative form is, itself, a difficult form to use and Salinger does it well. The complication of writing as if the author were a teenage boy makes the task, and the accomplishment, all the more impressive. It s hard to imagine that anyone could do a better job of creating all the thinking, judgments, self-aggrandizement, fantasies and other thoughts of a teenage boy any better than Salinger did in this novel. Still, I did not like the book. My goal for the year was to re-read at least 5 books and to read some classics I have not yet read. This book fit into the "classics" category, so I struggled through it even though I did not enjoy the experience. The main character is totally unlikeable and self centered (just as a real teenage boy would be), almost no plot or memorable action propels the story forward, and, in the end, the only thing to really say about the book is that it excellently portrays the thinking and activities of a teenage boy. So now, "been there, done that, hated it." I have the same trauma as Holden, losing someone you're close to at a young/important (developmental) age and this book came into my life when that same trauma began to resurface, and seeing a character my age with the same experience really helped me cope. I never understood why people hate Holden, or feel justified in hating him; When he's just a very lost guy, trying to adjust to this new world perspective without his brother. As someone who has been through that a multitude of times its not easy... It does make you bitter, it does make you depressed, esp at such a young age. People will have their two cents on Holden no matter what I say lol. But that being said, I identify with him a lot, and I revisit this book almost every month. My physical copy is BASICALLY my diary, and when I die, that shit is going with me. No mortal soul is allowed to look at my copy of The Catcher in The Rye.
“Holden Caulfield is supposed to be this paradigmatic teenager we can all relate to, but we don’t really speak this way or talk about these things,” Ms. Levenson said, summarizing a typical response. At the public charter school where she used to teach, she said, “I had a lot of students comment, ‘I can’t really feel bad for this rich kid with a weekend free in New York City.’ ” "Some of my best friends are children," says Jerome David Salinger, 32. "In fact, all of my best friends are children." And Salinger has written short stories about his best friends with love, brilliance and 20-20 vision. In his tough-tender first novel, The Catcher in the Rye (a Book-of-the-Month Club midsummer choice), he charts the miseries and ecstasies of an adolescent rebel, and deals out some of the most acidly humorous deadpan satire since the late great Ring Lardner. Holden's story is told in Holden's own strange, wonderful language by J. D. Salinger in an unusually brilliant novel. This Salinger, he's a short story guy. And he knows how to write about kids. This book though, it's too long. Gets kind of monotonous. And he should've cut out a lot about these jerks and all at that crumby school. They depress me. Belongs to Publisher SeriesBlackbirds (1992.2) Delfinserien (24) Grote Beren (41) — 12 more Keltainen kirjasto (358) Meulenhoff editie (503) Penguin Modern Classics (1248) rororo (851 / 23539) Signet Books (S1001) 白水Uブックス (51) Is contained inHas the (non-series) sequelHas as a studyHas as a commentary on the textHas as a student's study guideHas as a teacher's guide
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3 editions of this book were published by Hachette Book Group.
Editions: 0316769487, 0316769177, 0316769533
2 editions of this book were published by Penguin Australia.
Editions: 014023750X, 0241950430
hooky spree after leaving his private school early for holidays. At age 17, Holden spends most of this time drinking, and trying to 'get sexy' with various girls.
I picked this up as it was a classic I'd not read in highschool and it had been recommended to me. As a coming of age story, Catcher left much to be desired. Nothing remotely exciting happens. Honestly, Holden came across as kinda emo to me. At the very least, a whiny, pessimistic brat. He thinks just about everything is 'phoney' and his attitude towards women is special at best.
And the language! If I read 'old so-and-so' or 'x really did' one more time I was going to throw the book. The old thing really got me riled as he was inevitably referring to people his age or thereabouts.
The whole thing felt like a meandering fever dream of epically boring proportions. If this book hadn't been as short as it was, it would have been DNF for sure. NOT RECOMMENDED
****Read on my own (