Catcher in the Rye

Rating:
Summary: My Favorite Book
Review: I checked this book out at the library the other day and finished it that very same day. I believe it is now my new favorite book. Holden Caulfield is such a great character who narrates the book with a mix of humor, cynicism, and nostalgia. Holden has trouble making the transistion from childhood to adulthood due to the phoniness of it all. Longing to be a "catcher in the rye", he wishes he could save children from "falling" of a cliff into adulthood. This book should be read and reread by everyone. A true masterpiece.

Rating:
Summary: The book is o-so great and very amusing.
Review: I chose the novel as my term paper book and I chose to study about Holden's behavior and way of thinking and responding to situations. The novel is full of learnings and very down-to earth. Salinger made a very unique teenager which we can all relate to.

Rating:
Summary: A timeless literary classic that is timeless!
Review: I chose to read this book for my research paper in my junior year AP English class. I always had a feeling I would like the book, but I did not expect to love it as much as I do. Holden's story can be enjoyed on a basic narrative level and on a complex symbolic level. One of the great things about this novel is that, like "Lord of the Flies," it is a good vehicle for exposing young readers to the art of symbolism. There are countless symbols in this book and it is good practice for more complex works by authors like James Joyce. I also would like to take issue with those who don't like the book because they feel it is simply an "angry white male" book. I am a liberal in politics but I am totally against the politicizng of literature. However, those people's resentment of the book is not warented because I believe this book to have many anti-capitalist elements in it. But that does not matter to me. I love this book becasue Holden is the eternal teenager whom young readers will be able to relate to for another 50 years.

Rating:
Summary: Very few space battle scenes
Review: I confess to some disappointment with this book, though I should mention that I did appreciate the scene where Europa, a moon of Jupiter, collides with an asteroid. But the purpose of the space exploration chapters is a bit of a mystery to me, as much as I enjoyed them. How does this jibe with the prep-school coming-of-age theme in the earlier chapters? Perhaps my copy had some printing errors.

Rating:
Summary: Holden Caulfield made me want to puke
Review: I consider myself fortunate to get through high school without reading about the cynical and misanthropic Holden. No doubt, many of today's angst filled teenagers will relate, as he reminds me of a few immature fellows that I knew. The only reason to read novel this is to obtain a perspective on teenage pessimism. Unfortunately, not much about the main character is really ever revealed, except for why he seems so detached. Salinger has timelessly captured behavior of the modern disenfranchised youth. Listen to an angry teenager for about a week, and you'll get the idea. In the end, Holden Caulfield made me want to puke.

Rating:
Summary: 5 stars is not enough
Review: I could probably write a whole bunch of things that have already been said about this book. But the truth is, words are not enough. I've read CITR for the first time when I was 16. I'm 19 now and have read other great novels from authors such as Vonnegut, Heller and Rendell, but Salinger's Catcher in the Rye is still number one in my heart. I've promoted this book to so many people, I should work for Salinger's publisher or something. People say they're obsessed with this book, well guess what? I'm part of that statistic.

Rating:
Summary: Goodly.
Review: I could really relate to the character in this book because...well I don't know but he's pretty realistic. So are the others in the book, especially those he views with some disdain. If you liked this and you are a girl you will probably also like The Bell Jar and Invisible Monsters by Chuck Palahniuk. Maybe.

Rating:
Summary: There's too much meaning in it to get all 1st time around.
Review: I couldn't put this book down. When I had forgotten parts in the book several years later, I reread it. Holden, confused and disillusioned, is a deep feeling character and quite mature for his age. This book is such a quick read that you need to reread it several times to really get enought out of it. Each time I read it, I find something I missed and there is deeper meaning the more you read it.

Rating:
Summary: Re-read this book
Review: I decided to re-read this book. This may be the first book in 15 years that I decided to re-read - but I thought it was worth it (and it only takes a few hours to read). The Catcher in the Rye is a fantastic and inspiring book. I recently ran into a few people who never read the book. My question: why? Get the book right now and read.

Rating:
Summary: One of my Favorite Characters
Review: I decided to read the customer reviews of one of my all-time favorite books, sure that everyone must appreciate the extraordinary writing and character development as I did. I was shocked to see negative, narrow (not to mention grammatically incorrect) reviews. This book is not about having an action-packed plot, or even about "teenage angst, " which seems to be the buzz word. Salinger has drawn Holden to be a pure, true person. He shares ALL his feelings with us. How can the reader NOT relate to him? He holds nothing back; he bears his whole self to us--frustrations, insecurities, confusions, passions and all. He is not just going through the "angst" of being a teenager, but the difficulties of being human. Holden reminds us to experience life with eyes and hearts open. I fell in love with this character when I first read the book at 16, and still hold him dear to my heart at 29. This book should be on every persons reading list, from high school to old age. I thank Mr. Galbraith for introducing me to this book, which I continually re-read, and Salinger for such a beautiful, insightful, endearing character.