Catcher in the Rye

Rating:
Summary: Utter Complaining
Review: I had to read "The Catcher in the Rye" for school this year. I had just read "The Perks of Being a Walflower," which is an excellent book by...someone that slips my mind at the moment. However, the book was a diary type thing with the main character writing letters to this person that we never meet. I'd thought the book would put me in the mood for reading "The Catcher in the Rye," a 'coming of age story.' Unfortunately I was wrong. I thought that "The Catcher in the Rye" was about some guy who complains about his life the whole time, and when he's not doing that, he's talking about some girl. Now, okay, I'm female. So, maybe this book is really great for guys, but it did not speak to me whatsoever at all. The book is also written in the 50's so a lot of the slang and morals are out of fashion and not understandable. At the end, he finally made some great discovery or something. And the ending wasn't all that bad. Maybe if I could have related more to the book I would have enjoyed it further. Therefore, I'm just warning all you girls out there, that it's not exactly a wonderful experience

Rating:
Summary: A classic that can still be enjoyed by many people today.
Review: I had to read Catcher in the Rye in a Young Adult Lit. class in college a few years ago. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and hung on to it so I can reread it someday and enjoy it all over again. I was surprised reading through the customer reviews on here that quite a few people actually detested this book. Although there were also many people who loved it. I guess it's just one of those books that you either love or hate...

Rating:
Summary: GREST BOOK!!
Review: I had to read this book for English this past year. When the book was handed out, I thought..."Great, another boring book." I was TOTALLY wrong. I loved it. I found that teenagers today can relate to Holden because of the STUDID things that teenagers do. I think that a lot of teenagers can relate to it because of the mass problems that we as teenagers have to go through..smoking, sex, meeting people, school, and parents

Rating:
Summary: I Just don't get it
Review: I had to read this book for high school a couple of years ago and painfully read every page. I just didn't get what all the big hype on this book was about. Personally I hate depressing novels and music. So this one really turned me off. From the first page I was bored. I really don't know why Holden (the main character) didn't go see a Psychologist (but yet, he manages to see a prostitute instead. Go figure), cause he certainly needed to! Page after page I had to read about his troubles and horrible life. Swear word after swear word. I wonder after reading this how many times one can use the word "Lord"! I really feel sorry if you have to buy this book for required reading. And I just don't get why this is considered a "Classic"...personally if there is a book that portrays *correctly* the life of teenagers then I would definatly reccomend "A Seperate Piece" over this jumble of words any day. "The Catcher in the Rye" is like listening to a therapy session and should be left on the shelf.

Rating:
Summary: The third chapter on is wonderful...
Review: I had to read this book for High School some years back. The first two chapters seemed really boring and it was really hard for me to get into. But as soon as chapter 3 hit, I appreciated the true beauty of this book. It takes a little while to get used to his writing style, but it is really worth it. Once you do, you will want to read every word that Salinger writes. He seems to get so deep in to the mindset of a 16 year old boy, while keeping sophistication that any age can appriciate. This book is a clasic for a reason. It is truly wonderful.

Rating:
Summary: Stimulating plot, abrupt ending
Review: I had to read this book for my 11th grade English class. This book was really easy to read. I usually don't read any of the English books that are assigned to me, but I read "The Catcher in the Rye" anyway. The story was quite simple and interesting. My only complaint is the ending. I thought it was somewhat abrupt. But, all in all, it was an easy reading that had a stimulating plot.

Rating:
Summary: It should be read by everyone at least once in their life
Review: I had to read this book for my english class (11th grade). I thought the book was really great. Being 16 myself I could relate to Holden in many ways. I think Sallinger's writing style is great. His narrative is easy to read and it paints a crystal clear picture of what's going on. Holden does curse a lot, but who doesn't? The one draw back of this book is its ending. But I guess it acts as a symbol of how Holden's life is not wrapped up in one nice little package. Instead, it continues on with its trials and tribulations--nothing is ever perfect.

Rating:
Summary: A good book for some, dreadful for others.
Review: I had to read this book for my high school english class. I had moderate optomism about the book. The Catcher in the Rye is about the misadventures of a young teen named Holden, who just go kicked out of his forth private school. I automatically thought about a rebelellious teenager whih grabbed my attention. He goes from one location to another, from school to NYC, to a mental hospital where he tells this story. Many people respect and appreciate this book and the work of the skilled author, J.D. Salinger, but they also say that you either love the book or hate the book. As much as I can respect this book, I have to say I can't stand the story.

Salinger does write the book in a style that I like. The scenes and descriptions described in the book are so vivid and realistic that I can easily picture everything in my head, detail to detail. The characters that Holden encounters have the same detail put into them as the settings and situations, from their looks, to attitude and demeanor, to even their bad habits.

However, as good as the detail is in the books, the story itself is the root of any good novel. This is where this book's quality plummets badly and my optimistic attitude therefore plummited dramitcally. First off, this novel is lacking a large element that puts a good book together: plot. I read the book, beginning to end, and there is none. There is not a single thing that would show that the story has a plot or a task at hand. Most would say that the task for Holden is to get home after being kicked out of school, but a large chunk of this book is all side treks, diverting away from the main situation at hand, resulting in a novel about nothing. This really makes the book very boring and pointless. I then found myself wanting to put the book down quite often after only reading a few pages.

The second element to a good book is a good protagonist, or main character. The main character in this book, Holden, is a kind of protagonist that many just don't like. He is your stereotypical rich snob, coming from a wealthy family who can afford to send him from one school to another. He also has a snotty, pessimistic attitude about life, other people, and himself. To all the people around him, they're all "phony" and he's better than them, but when he thinks about himself, he degrades himself also. I was able to relate holden tomany people in my school which once again showed the detail of this book. I beleive this is very hypocritical, but he admits that in the book. He also gets very depressed easily, so you don't really see a happy side to this person, or any side that would say he's motivated to do something, or anything for that matter. He just brags about his sister, drinks, treats women poorly, and spends a ton of money, all while under heavy depression. Holden is the kind of person you either feel sorry for, or just want to smack in the face. Both feelings are not feelings a reader should have about the protagonist.

The overall mood of this book is the final element that makes me want to put the book down after a few pages. Holden's attitude gets him into lots of trouble and lots of bad situations. From one encounter to another, it all ends in sadness and depression. Imagine having to read one depressing story to another, in perfect detail. The only good thing I can say about the mood is that the author writes it very well. However, when I read this book, I always had to stop myself from getting myself depressed after reading all of Holden's misadventures.

To summarize, imagine sitting in front of a rich pessimist and hearing him ramble on and on and on about everything. There would be no point, no happiness, and no end. Imagine having to hear the rambler for a grade. Can't stand it? Neither could I. Sorry Mr. Salinger, but please put your writing skill to better use. As much as I respect the quality work of this author, I couldn't stand reading this book....

Rating:
Summary: interesting, fun book about nothing
Review: I had to read this book for one of my two English classes this semester, at the same time I was reading another literary classic, "Lord of the Flies". I had high expectations for this book, and it did illustrate teenage life and troubles well. My criticism? It didn't go anywhere. There was no resolution, and really no plot. It is a bunch of jumbled memories and personal thoughts and opinions. They are very pleasing to read, and his "kill the phonies" attitude matches mine exactly which was very intreaging for me to read about, but when I finished the book, as I did about 15 minutes ago, I was left with this feeling of disbelief. It didn't give any resolution, no finish, just left you hanging with a bunch of unanswered questions and confusion. I liked it when I was reading it, but not that I'm done I don't think I would do it again.

Rating:
Summary: Respect
Review: I had to read this book for school! I personly think that Catcher In The Rye is the most down to earth book I have ever read. I do not belive that there could be a more indepth, realistic and interesting a charictor as Holden. There is no finding a more real charictor! The book made me think more than any book I have ever read. I would understand why people don't like this book (it's not the book it's you), but for those who do your in for the best read of your life! (Holden is not gay- thats for you Even)