The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
In this book we follow Holden, a teenager who has just been expelled from (another) school. Afraid of having to go home early, Holden whittles away the time in New York. He gets drunk, he smokes a lot, he hires a prostitute – you know, the kinds of things normal teenagers do.
This review is quite brief because I found this book quite disappointing. It’s hard to relate to a main character who does so many stupid things, who drifts through life and who doesn’t seem to make any kind of progress or learn from anything he experiences. If there was a point to this book I must’ve missed it – the ability of Holden to get easily side-tracked into little whinges to me was pointless and annoying because it’s as if the majority of the book is him complaining about other people.
Maybe there’s 65 million people that disagree with me but I’d suggest people avoid this one.
October 7th, 2008 at 9:25 am
Dude! That’s one of my favourite books!
But I agree with everything you say about it. Not a lot happens. Maybe think of it in its historical context, which was that, at this stage in American life, teenagers didn’t exist yet. You were a child, then at school, then you were an adult. Responsibility. Marriage. War. No chance to fluff around wondering who you were or what you wanted to do with yourself. Certainly no thinking about sex and drinking. This book was BANNED for obscenity.
October 7th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Brocky, I agree whole-heartedly with you.
In fact, I will gladly hold Holden’s arms behind his back while you bitch-slap him upside the head.
Sometimes I wonder what makes (or who decides) something worthy of being a “classic”? For example; I recently had the fortune of seeing the Venus de Milo in the “flesh” at the Louvre. Goddess of Love & Beauty huh? More like goddess of Upsizing & Salad-dodging!
Controversial? Maybe. But I’ve seen Forestville-Men’s-Hockey Umpires with more feminine figures…
October 7th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
@franzy: very true about the historical context. Too much HBO has de-sensitised me *cries*
@the other, other sam: I think Public Enemy said it the best: Don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t believe the hype.
October 7th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
YEEEAAAAAAHHHH BOYIIIIIEEEEEEE!