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Summary: Catching up on the classics...
Review: I'm sure I was supposed to read this book in high school but it was so long ago, I can't recall reading it (not to mention that I didn't care for school, like my new friend Holden Caulfield). It is refreshing to read a book that is written as though the main character is talking to you, and not so concerned about grammar and proper writing etiquette. Since the book was written in the fifties, a lot of the stories and scenery seem dated. Some important things about the book, for me at least: 1) the book is short (around 200 pages); 2) easy to read - never a dull moment; and 3) not too fast-paced like a novel written by a lawyer. Before I bought the book, I read the reviews on Amazon.com and even considered the negative ones before I bought the book. But now, having read Catcher, I would guess that those people are the ones that Holden would refer to as phonies. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that has Attention Deficit Disorder (or self-diagnosed ADD, like myself) OR to those of you that just don't care to read books much (also, like myself).
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Summary: The opinion of a swiss student
Review: I'm swiss and go this summer in an american school to improve my english.This is where I read the book for my first time.I can already say that this book is one of the best of the american litterature.Before reading it , I thought good american writers were only able to write books that will sell , later, in a mall or supermarket( but I knew there was some exceptions as Steinbeck, Hemingway,etc....).But for the fourth time in my life , I've found an american writer who is really interesting , in comparison with the french one, that I usually study. Holden is a very complex character who is very interesting to follow through his story.He posses a lot of different behaviours.In this way, i think, everybody can find a part of him, of his defaults,etc.. That's what happened with me. The style is good but could be better but he exagerrated often too much with this young languag. An other thing that could be better is the end . Holden doesn't seem to have learn anything of his experience and still beeing so full.He still doesn't want to make an effort to live better. Four stars also , because it is one of the first time i see feelings so well explain and written
Rating: 
Summary: Absolutely ridiculous
Review: I've always wondered what about this book makes it a classic so I borrowed it from a friend and got ready to be entertained. But I was sorely and thoroughly dissappointed. I can't believe this guy actually suckered a publishing house into actually printing this piece of garbage. Unles they did it as an example of just how NOT to write a book. There is no plot, no real character development and the language is instantly droll. If I hadn't borrowed this book I would have been angry at having been swindled out of good money. Don't waste your time.
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Summary: Timeless
Review: I've heard many call "The Catcher in the Rye" overrated and that its and poor language keeps it on the banned books list for good reason. What I have to say about this is that I never read Catcher in high school and probably for these reasons, but I am on my third time as we speak and I can rarely speak of a book that has touched like this one has. I can relate to Holden Caufield even as a 20 year old architecture student more than 20 times a day. This is a book that anyone who hasn't found themself yet, myself included, should look to for insight. It is a remarkable story of a boy who doesn't know what to do or where he's going. It's absolutely incredible-
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Summary: I REALLY REALLY wanted to like this book...
Review: I've heard that is was one of those life altering, perspective changing books that every high schooler had to read, but for some reason it wasn't in my curriculum when I was in high school, so I decided to pick it up one day, I was completely excited and ready to be changed... As it turned out, I could hardly finish this book due to Holden's incessant whining, "Oh, I thought maybe I'd do this, but then I was bored so I didn't"... Poor Me, Poor Me, oh yeah, it's so tough to be a rich kid with every opportunity that life has to offer laying at his feet. This character made me sick with pity for what the youth of today has been and can be.Jillian
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Summary: The Catcher in the Rye - J. D. Salinger
Review: I've heard that Mark David Chapman, John Lennon's assassin, often used to read this book, and since John Lennon is one of my biggest idols, the book caught my interest - standing there in the school's cupboard. I thought it must be a very special novel. Every book that can be read more than once is out of the ordinary - and particularly if somebody special enough to kill John Lennon reads it.
And very much indeed, The Catcher in Rye is a special book - one of the more special I've read. The story sets off by Holden Caulfield, the main character, telling you about him being kicked out of his fourth school - the fine and merited Pency Prep in Pennsylvania. He takes farewell of some of his friends, travels to New York and spends a few days there. All this time he is thinking about whether he should go back to his parents or not. Everything in the book, except the quite many flashbacks, is happening within a few days. Holden is a very special person. He doesn't really like anyone, except his little sister Phoebe. He is pessimistic and miss-trusts almost everyone he meets - which first annoyed me as reader, but after a while amused me because it's so well-written. The whole story consists of Holden telling you what he thinks about the people at Pency, the people at the other schools he went to and others he knows. The book also describes his way of thinking about ordinary things like "where do all the ducks in Central Park go when the lagoon is frozen?". Holden is very anti-cliché in general, but he is especially against the adult society as such. He was not kicked out of the schools because he wasn't clever enough, but because he couldn't get along with the teachers, and he also couldn't cope with his parent's way of life. Perhaps it's because of his age (right between being a child and a grown-up) or because of his childhood, but he always seems to want to be rebel and revolt against society, without really knowing why. But he also wants to do something good to society and speaks well of people who do - for example some nuns that he meets. He has a dream, that some children are playing in a rye field up on a cliff, and he is the one saving (catching) them from falling off the cliff and into the ocean. I absolutely think that The Catcher in the Rye is a great story. The ground-story is very banal with him being kicked out, going to New York, and thinking about whether he should go back home or not. One doesn't even get to know what happens when he gets back home, but even though, the story is utterly worth reading - it's the self-reflecting thoughts that Holden has and the ideas behind the book that count.
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Summary: What was all the hype about?
Review: I've just finished reading this book out of curiosity and I expected much more.I'd heard about it being banned and naturally wanted to know what it was all about. No big deal.Just an ordinary book.I'll admit that it was good and I laughed out loud a few times but he droned on alot,and come on now, how many times DOES this boy say 'it killed me' or 'goddam'? It also got on my nerves the way everything depressed him.But I think it was nice that he was so caring about his sister. I certainly don't think this book should have been banned,but read itjust for the sake of it. "Catcher in the rye?Yeah,I've read it."
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Summary: Unputdownable!!
Review: I've just finished reading this book. And my first reactionwas to surf the net and read as much about this book as possible. Iwanted to relive some of the magic through the eyes of others who love this book. Needless to say, the book was sheer reading pleasure as much for it's language as for the thoughts expressed by Holden. The ending was so moving I could'nt resist calling my little sister in India right away. This book definitely rates as one of the very best I have ever read.
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Summary: I agree: What is the POINT HERE?
Review: I've just read this book for Literature class. Now, maybe after some going-through-the-book-in-class, I might be able to understand all the "hidden meanings," but according to my instinct, I really don't see anything valuable right now. When I first picked up this book, I thought, "hey, I've heard of it before, people say it's really great!" So i started reading it with the great hope that it would be good. Boy was I disappointed! When I read the first few chapters I thought, "This Holden guy SEEMS to be a fun person, now let's get into some plot!" Then all through out the rest of the book I just kept looking forward to something, ANYTHING! I'm like, "Something better happen soon, there's like, 20 more pages left in the book and I STILL don't see any point!" My was I dissapointed when I saw the last page! I'm like, what happened? This is IT???! Whaa? Sure, the language and all the stuff that the author used can help someone to relate to Holden, but there has to be a story to help people see his point! I know Holden's supposed to be confused, but what solved that confusion? Phoebe? It didn't seem that way! Anyway, I don't think anyone today is STUPID enough to go on the streets of NY for three days just because he/she is confused about the meaning of his life! I don't even think that Holden is confused about the meaning of his life. He is just afraid to confront his parents with the news that he's kicked out of Prep school! I don't see the point: if he is afraid to confront his parents, he should TRY not to flunk almost every subject. If he decided to flunk, then he should be able to go home and not be scared! What's wrong with him? Another reason to not like this book. I think that this book is really stereotypical. And to say stuff like "Holden represents the confused youth of today" is stereotypical too. I agree that many teenagers today are confused, maybe I am too, but I think it is REALLY rude and stupid to use a character like Holden Caulfield to sort of represent us. Maybe Holden's fantasy about his cottage in the west is similar to some of the fantasies that we have today, but a fantasy is a fantasy. And many of Holden's other foolish acts really evened out this more "sensible" fantasy. That's my thought. I can't believe I just wasted all this time to make my point why I dislike this pointless book.
Rating:
Summary: it was ok
Review: I've looked at this book a couple of times and I never really wanted to read it but then we had to for ninth grade english so I finally got around to reading it. I suppose it was good for what it is (character sketch?) but Holden Caufield (isn't that the most awesome name? too bad it had to be wasted on this guy) is a complete and total loser. I can't relate to him at all. He's a lazy bum who doesn't seem to care about much of anything. Through the whole book, he complains about how phony people are. Well, yes. People are phony. It's a fact of life. You can't change it. Get over it. Many of his observations on people and things in general are extremely witty and the writing is phenomenal but I still can't understand why anyone would want to read this book.
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