Rating: 
Summary: A strange, but exciting book
Review: I went through this whole book wondering, "What is the plot?" I did not realize until after I had finished reading that this book was about many different themes and that the plot varied. The main character, a sixteen year old boy named Holden Caulfield, gets kicked out of a Prep school and spends most of the book wondering the streets of New York making observations in his head. He goes through many different character stages during the novel. In the beginning, he seems like a normal, practical kid who does not get good grades in school. After he is expelled from school, he gives in to increasing feelings of loneliness and misery. He begins to think about people he used to know, his dead brother Allie, his sister Phoebe, old girlfriend Jane Gallagher, and friend Sally Hayes. He ends up spending time with Jane and then sneaking into his house to see Phoebe. I will not ruin the rest of the story, but many things happen to Holden that seem weird and irrelevant while reading the novel. Overall, I think this was a good story. Like I said, I was confused while I was reading, but I was able to put the pieces together after I finished the novel. I think J.D. Salinger wrote this story very well. The writing was intriguing and interesting. It was not one of those books that I could not put down, but whenever I had some spare time, I wanted to read it. It had a style much different that any book that I have ever read. I kept waiting for something exciting to happen, but it never did. My interest in Holden is what kept me into the book. I found the way his mind worked to be fascinating. Whenever he got a thought in his head, he acted on it. It was this impulsiveness that often got him in trouble. I do have some criticisms, though. Even though it was well written I think there should have been a better plot and more themes to make the story more interesting. I also have some questions as to Holden's character. I do not think the reasons for his bizarre actions were explained well enough. At one point in the story, Phoebe asked him to come up with one thing that he liked a lot. He was such a pessimist that he could not think of anything at first. He finally thought up a wild scenario that he said he would like. He said that he would like to stand on the edge of a cliff that had a rye field on it. The field would have children playing on it and he would catch them if they started to fall off the cliff. He would be a 'catcher in the rye'. That was the only thing that he could dream up that he liked. As you can see, I have a few criticisms, but I found this book to be very enjoyable. In general, I thought The Catcher in the Rye was a good novel and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking for a book to read.
Rating: 
Summary: A Somewhat Misguided Look at Adolescence
Review: I will not summarize A Catcher in the Rye. I presume that everybody knows what the story is about. This story presents the essence of adolescence -- a view of the world through the eyes of Holden Caulfield. This view is bitter, cynical and thoroughly idealized. This is something that I thoroughly contest. Salinger uneccessarily caracatures teenagers as irresponsible, maturity-hating spoofs
Rating: 
Summary: I HATED this book
Review: I will try to keep myself composed here, but I absolutely HATED this book. It was slow, had a terrible plot (or lack thereof), and bored the hell out of me. Holden Caulfield does NOT embody anything (like despair, cynicism, and realism as many people say), except for annoyance, and perhaps whininess. Seriously. Not only am I not sympathetic (or empathetic) with him, but I feel the urge to reach into the pages and slap the stuffing out of him. I think perhaps the worst part about the book is that its not even like Holden DOES anything. Hell, things dont even really happen TO him, either. He just drifts around, which would be fine if interesting things happened to him... but they dont. ...
Rating: 
Summary: MASTERPIECE
Review: I wish I could give out more stars. I am entering the 8th grade and I thought this book was a beautiful work of literature.I couldn't put it down. Read this book!
Rating:
Summary: one of the best books ever
Review: i wish more authors wrote books like this. This is one of my all time favorite books. Any guy in his early teens to early twenties can't help but relate to some of Holden's problims. Holden is a traggic hero and I love the way he tells things like they are. This is an absolutely must read. I never read books twice but I'd read this book again and again, etc...
Rating:
Summary: How Many Young People Can Relate?
Review: I wonder how many young people can relate to J.D. Salinger's protagonist. I sure could. I read this book as a junior in high school. Now, three years later, I can still empathize with Holfield. This book is for teens and anyone who wants to understand teens.
Rating:
Summary: Better with time
Review: I wonder if J.D. Salinger has seen all these reviews. It's wonderful that one book could be responsible for all this. "The Catcher in the Rye" is not a book I would suggest to younger readers. Not for any reason other than the fact that some younger readers might not completely understand what the point is. I liked this book enough to re-read it 5 times! (Then again, I've read everything Salinger has written many times over.) Salinger paints beautiful portraits of character we all can understand and learn from.
Rating:
Summary: An Incredible Book
Review: I would just like to say, that most of the people who wrote the reviews above didn't even understand the book. True, the book is about a couple of days in a sixteen-year-old's life, but there is a point, a reason in which Holden Caulfield explains about those particular days of his life. There is a process of alienation which occurs throughout the book and finally comes to a hidden conclusion at the end of the book, which results in having to read the last chapter very carefully to find out about Holden's whereabouts at that point. I had to read the last chapter three times before I finally understood where he really was and why he didn't give details in that chapter. All in all, this is a fantastic book about alienation and adaptation only for those who truly understand it, and for those who don't understand the meaning, it is a funny story about a cynical teenager's life.
Rating:
Summary: Salinger did not write enough books.
Review: I would like to sit down and have dinner with J.D. Salinger. If indeed there was one person I could, it would surely be he. To have the recall, the perception, that he has as an adult is remarkable. If a read or re-read of "A Catcher in the Rye" does not rekindle some flame in you, then STOP! Stop and read it again. If you don't, or you don't get something from it, you have surely lost some touch with the past and growing up. The beauty of this book is that I think it indeed touches everyone in some way. Caufield is us, at feeling our worst, and makes us feel good again. The book is especially monstrous to anyone who grew up felling different. It is at once, sympathetic, rebellious, understaning and certainly explanitory to anyone who felt they didn't belong, as well as those who did and knew someone who didn't. I have read the book many times and actually gave it out as Christmas presents this year to let others experience it. I can only say Bravo and I wish we could have heard more from Salinger or, in fact, Caufield.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant!
Review: I would love to say something like: all those people who didn't like this book just don't know what life is all about, but I won't. This book is a classic and deservedly so. Salinger captures the spirit of Holden so emphatically that the book takes on an uneasy reality that few others have ever done for me. I suppose its true that you either love it or you hate it, but either way this book will take you to the extreme. And the ending (it just killed me:)) has got to be one of the best endings ever - so epicly overstated that it leaves you completely numb. Definitely a must read.
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