Catcher in the Rye

Rating:
Summary: Im in love
Review: After reading this book, i never wanted to put it down again. I immediately read it over, and over and by now I must have read it 50 times but still love it jsut as much. Many people read this book and think that Holden is such a bad person, but i dont see him that way at all. I just think he needs someone to talk to, and some help to deal with the nightmares he faces in his every day life. This book made me realize how sometimes people are going through things no one else in the world knows about....and I think that it is truly amazing. I love this book and I love Holden.

Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read!!
Review: After reading this book, I wouldn't go so far as to say that there is a Holden Caulfield in all of us. I will say that no matter how contentiously worded they are, Holden's complaints about society are warranted. The basis of his cynicism -which is, in short, the cruelties and shortcomings of human nature- is no less a substantial basis today than it was decades ago, when the book was written. Holden's psychological state magnetizes the analytical reader, and is a queerly nagging force that makes it almost uncomfortable to admit when som off-the-wall comment he spouts makes sense. There are no answers to life's questions in this book, but I recommend it to all who know better than to expect answers from a depressed and lonely teenaged boy.

Rating:
Summary: A Very Controversial Novel
Review: After reading very serious novels in 8th grade such as The Crucible, We the Living, Anthem, and others, I decided to take a break and read something that I had preconceived to be easy reading. I immediately delved into The Catcher in the Rye the day summer vacation started and read all through the night without even noticing the time pass by. It was the most accurate observation on teenage behavior I've ever known. Despite the fact that Holden Caulfield is a symbol for many teenagers, he has his own unique sense of authenticity and shattered perspective of his surroundings. In the course of merely a few days, the transitory moods and emotions that shape adolescence are ever present in the universal protagonist who is the hero of many young adults.

I enjoyed this book so much because it stimulated so much controversy that it was banned in the 1960s. Teenagers such as myself are very curious and want to know and understand why and how a book can be so controversial. I wanted to know what was in "Pandora's box," so I read it and I encourage any teenager who seeks understanding from others to read this. The power and depth of this novel is truly amazing.

Rating:
Summary: Overrated? But of course. Classic? Not exactly
Review: After sifting through the mountains of good reviews this book has recieved (and the intriguing title) I decided to check it out. Bad move. (Most of) The characters, particularly Holden Caulfield, are flat, boring and Holden is not, as some reviews gush, "identifiable with myself" at all. Rather, he's made out to be a lost, confused (read-annoying) teenager with no direction of where he's going, leaving a large, empty hole in the plot. Phoebe, Holden's sister, is an (rather, the only) exception.
Maybe I just don't get the book. Whatever. Just let me say that this was a serious letdown.

Rating:
Summary: Is a top 100 book and best seller only by popularity
Review: After teachers and friends telling me that I simply *HAD* to read it, I went out and spent 6 bucks on The Catcher in the Rye. If I wanted to be put to sleep I could have done it for much cheaper than 6 bucks. Perhaps it gained popularity because it was one of the first books to swear and show the grim reality of some aspects of life. There are numerous books which do this now, but are not nearly as popular as this one. I found the book lacking in plot, variety, climax, and skill in every way. While it was not the worst book I have read, it is still on my list of books I would rather have a root canal than read again. If someone wants to read about and experience the grim reality of the world, read "Atlas Shrugged". If you want to listen to a teenager whine repeatedly without any direction...call me (I'm 17) or waste the money and read Catcher in the Rye.

Rating:
Summary: I don't see what the fuss is about
Review: After years of hearing how this books was so controversial, I read it. It has no plot, it goes no where. At the end you are left wondering. I just do not see how this book ranks in the top of modern classics. It is the story of a typical teenage in the 90's but written in the 60's.

Maybe it was controversial then, not now.

Clayton

Rating:
Summary: "I'm afraid of people who like Catcher In The Rye"
Review: After you read this book, go search out the Too Much Joy song, "William Holden Caulfield". It's on the Cereal Killers release.

"They called me William Holden Caulfield; it was no compliment. What's wrong with William Holden Caulfield? All that stuff that bummed me out ten years ago still bums me today, and boy I wanna know - who died and made you my mom and me some stupid kid? How can we forget all those things we did?"

"I'm afraid of people who like Catcher In The Rye. Yeah I like it too, but someone tell me why people he'd despise say I feel like that guy. I don't wanna grow up cause I don't wanna die."

I'm just a few months away from turning 40. Maybe it's my midlife crisis that caused me to want to go back and reread this book for the umpteenth time. I go back and read it every few years, and it always moves me. The line from the song notwithstanding, I think alot of people relate to Holden, because alot of us are still struggling to figure out who we are - just like Holden.

I've always gotten a kick out of the things that bug Holden, and how he hates them specifically, not generally. Wish I had the book in front of me, but to do that I'd have to go back into the bedroom and run the risk of waking my wife. For Holden, that would be something like "It bugs me when guys are reviewing a book and won't go back into their bedrooms to get it because they are afraid of waking up their wife. I hate that." See what I mean? He says it as though it's something that has happened thousands of times over instead of something that just happened.

Holden is a lovable, insecure kid who is struggling to "keep it real", whatever that means. I think we all find something to relate to in his insecurity and his frustration with how the world doesn't meet with his pathological view of it. It's sad to think that high schools would have banned this book. Oh no, we can't have our students actually thinking. We just want them to feel good about themselves...

It just hit me that the Replacements song "Sixteen Blue" fits nicely here as well. And let's not forget "Roller-skate Skinny" by The Old 97s. (That's how Holden described Phoebe - "she's skinny. Roller-skate Skinny.") Hey, that's a good idea for a mix - what should I call it? "Blues for Holden Caulfield" maybe?

Rating:
Summary: An excellent read for any parent or teenager.
Review: After you read this you'll wonder what in the life of a teenager has really changed from the 50's to the 90's. It reads like teenager's act and speak in today's schools and in society. The arrogant "I know everything" attitude is masterfully detailed by Salinger. The sex, alcohol, and "don't give a damn" attitude of Holden is really the reality of just about every teenager, even today. That is what makes Salinger's book a classic. Holden is someone we either were or someone we knew at some point in our lives. We ALL sympathize with Holden, yet at the same time we say to ourselves, "what the hell is this kid thinking?" Yet, we all know exactly what he is thinking, even if we don't like to admit it! If you open your mind and your heart to Holden Caulfield, you are really opening up to what went on in yourself as a teenager and what is going on in the mind of your teenagers! Caulfield reminds me of the character, Joe Green, a troubled soul on a quest to understand his past in Steiger's new master piece, Alien Rapture. I highly endorse buying this book. It is a must read!

Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece of the anti-hero
Review: After you read this, Holden Caulfield will live on in your mind, hanging around, speaking through you, informing the way you think of yourself and others. It's a masterpiece of writing, in which the author clearly and completely presents to you another person's mind and soul.

It is an incredible exercise in empathy. It really was. As I read it, I realized that Holden was far from perfect, but I cared so much what happened to him, I could feel his loneliness and could see him resisting getting the help he needs. Salinger's recreation of a boy headed "to a fall," as Mr. Antolini tells him, is an amazing opportunity to be someone else for awhile.

The colloquial speech of the novel is well suited for reading aloud, and I really enjoyed that aspect of it. I really did. We read it like madmen whenever we could. I'm not kidding.

I guess I just want to say that I love and care for Holden Caulfield and I hope, somewhere, he's alright.

Rating:
Summary: I stand in awe
Review: All i can say is 'thank you.