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Summary: A little scary...
Review: ...that I can see a little of myself in this book. The fact that Hinckley, Chapman and other had this book in their possession does not bode well with my outlook for myself! :-)Actually, I have never been a big fan of "stream of consciousness" writing until Holden Caulfield. (Is that what it is?) Here is a guy who probably thinks the way a lot of us do. He hates the world and would like to crush every single phony out there. He really would. The difference between Holden and you or I? We would NEVER admit it. There is a reason the book is a classic. Hey. It's less than.... What's to lose.
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Summary: All I have to say is....
Review: ...that if you didn't like Catcher is the Rye, you're scared to admit Holden reminded YOU of YOURSELF.Holden is the atypical teenager. I know I saw alot of myself in Holden and Phoebe. Holden and Phoebe's relationship mirrors the relationship I have with my older brother. It's one of the very BEST books ever written.
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Summary: QxQxQ...Deeper Meaning...QxQxQ [12.3.02]
Review: .:My "2-Chunk" View:. The classic novel "The Catcher in the Rye," by J.D. Salinger, demonstrates the eremitic, yet everyday-life of a teenager named Holden Caufield by exhibiting the agony he experiences constantly but eventually displaying there is more to him than one perceives. Holden gets kicked out of Pencey Highschool--one of the many schools he's been kicked out of already- and on his way to his dorm, he decides to visit one of his acquaintances when "all of a sudden," he says, "I changed my mind. All of a sudden, I decided what I'd really do, I'd get the hell out of Pencey-right that same night and all... I just didn't want to hang around any more. It made me too sad and lonesome" (p. 51). Depressed of his life, he depreciates the many failures and downfalls that he has been reproved of and refuses to atone for his heedlessness and imprudence. Holden neglectfully ignores better opportunities in addition to neglecting his problems and usual life-obstacles by manifesting his hate of the world and his aimless futile of his life. Negligent of insolence, his ten-year-old sister, Pheobe, even persists he doesn't "like anything that's happening" which "made [Holden] even more depressed when she said that" (p. 169). Pheobe finds the right words to portray Holden's personality and most likely the main reason why Holden is insecure and unhappy--because there's nothing he takes the time to enjoy. Holden, however, listens to Pheobe and although he doubts her, he cares about what she says thus portraying the affectionate side of him and conveying his character as a means of possible hope within himself. Although incredulous, despite the many hardships Holden encounters, the author is trying to depict the misery of a teenager that he or she goes through is something that many misunderstand and that there's always something deeper then many descry it as. --- .:My Opinion:. I was astonished at Holden's attitude and use of words, but of course characteristics such as these are necessary to portray the type of character and set the mood. Constantly, however, Holden always seemed to get side tracked telling a story then suddenly jumping to something completely irrelevant. Most likely, most novels start out slow-however! I found this book slow until the very end. I can see why this book is considered a classic because its value to society it confers, yet I never found any excitement in reading it. This book in my opinion isn't exactly a story, but more of a reality check. Honestly, when I finished reading the book, all I could say is, "Okaaay?" I was definitely going to rate this book a "1" until I read other reviews and realized how unperceptive I was being. I contemplated about what the message was and what kind of character Holden represents in society today. I considered pensively about the irrelevant details and the simple, constant use of certain words, and finally came to a conclusion that everytime he talked to someone they wouldn't listen to him. Then I realized that was exactly what I was doing-I didn't want to hear his "boring" stories that had nothing to do with anything! The whole time I was thinking, "What is he so depressed about?!" but I realized in the end that that's why Pheobe made him so happy-- she listened to him. So I changed my view about things and ruminated that Salinger's message of a teenager's deeper feelings is exactly what this book is. The novel, "The Catcher in the Rye," is a teenager of books with deeper meaning, just like Holden. Strange, huh? How we judge something or someONE before we actually stop and take a deeper look? "Everyone sees who you seem to be, few understand who you really are." --Machiavelli
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Summary: It moved me.
Review: 10 years ago I read this novel and hated it with a deep passion--dull and overrated. Recently, I decided to give it another chance and am I ever lucky that I did! I loved it! This is a painfully honest book. Superficially, not much happens. Assorted memories, thoughts, and strange encounters. Holden will both frustrate and fascinate readers. On one hand, he is brilliant and extremely perceptive. He's genuine in his desire to be a kind, good person and for people to treat each other with respect and dignity. On the other hand, Holden's views of life are completely distorted and idealistic. He is unhappy because he never allows himself to enjoy the moment fully for what it is. Even worse, Holden lets himself fall into depression and self-pity spontaneously and erratically. The fear is that he won't open his eyes and realize that he can't change the way that people are. He can only change his perspective of the world. Sometimes the most satisfying moments in life are the simplest ones.
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Summary: Beyond the limitations of time and space...
Review: 16-year-old Holden Caulfield is more than the character in a book. Salinger has, through this youngster's eyes, made and accurate, moving -and at times hilarious- depiction of an everage teenager's mind. The narration of this boy's anguish and confusion after having been kickend out of school, and not knowing what to do with his life, goes beyond the limits of the novel and can easily represent the feelings of loneliness and disorientation of anyone alive in a crazy world. New York and the year 1945 set aside, this narration outstansingly trespasses the barriers of place and time, making it a MUST-READ book anywhere and any time...
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Summary: Happy Birthday Catcher in the rye.
Review: 50 years young today! Still as fresh as ever. "She was skinny, Rollerskate skinny"
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Summary: Interesting to know
Review: 6) Book Review The Catcher in the Rye is an American text in 26 chapters by J.D. Salinger. It was published for the first time in 1951. The main character, Holden Caulfield, sixteen years narrates his own story from the time when he has dismissed from his third private school to return Ill and in a state physical and mental shock, to the shelter of his home in New York three days later. Before this novel, J.D. Salinger was of basic non-literary status. The Catcher in the Rye was his first step onto the literary playing field. This initial status left Salinger, as a serious writer, almost unique as a sort of free agent, not bound to one or more schools of critics, like many of his contemporaries were. This ability to write freely, his status as nobody in the literary world, was Salinger's greatest asset. Holden's story is in first- person narrative, and is told in Holden own language with unconscious humour. It is just before Christmas and Holden Caulfield, has been kicked out of the exclusive Pencey Prep, a school in Pennsylvania. Life at Pencey was dreary, artificial, and of course, expensive. It was the latest schools were Holden got the ax. Understandably he's in no hurry to found his parents. So He takes his stuff and what money he has and went to a hotel in New York City. There he passed few days living new experiences. He is involved with a variety of persons including taxi drivers, two nuns, three girls from Seattle, a prostitute, and a former teacher. And the sad ending in which Holden ends up in a mental ward is depressing. 'The Catcher in The Rye' gives us a chance to catch quick, half-amused, half-frightened glimpses of ourselves and our contemporaries, as Salinger confronts us with his brilliant mirror images. What makes the book so good is that it is realistic and believable. It could happen to anyone. In fact, it happens to hundreds of teenagers every year. Besides, out of all the characters in popular literature, Holden is probably one of the most "real" to his readers. All this is not to say that only teenagers will like the book. They are more likely to like it, but anyone could like it. It is a realistic description of the world. Many of the things said in the book about human nature are so dead-on accurate that is it damn near scary.
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Summary: There is a point where you have to came up
Review:
This is the story of someone that is not ok. In the end he understands this an decides to treat himself. So, you can take a good message from it. I.e, this is a story about a person that goes down and gets to the pit and than understands that the only way is up ( I know it seems like some kind of corny, but my english is not very good). Some people, in some time, in their teens, or later in their lives, feel like that. This story is about someone who finaly choses to fight back. And of course his cynicism must be a result of the deturped way he sees life (resulting from he fact that he is not ok), that, being the TRUTH or not(you will never know), must be altered.It's rather impressive how some of the reviews are full of a "upper look" of people that don't what it is to be "down". They never suffered alienation. And maybe they are right. Maybe they should rule the world. Well, I really don't know. Like the character of this book I just "think about things".
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Summary: dumbing down our children
Review: A 1651 favorable reviews, who the hell could disagree ? Well I'll try..
Been working in the various college bookstores since 1968, I had a chance to read a few pages from this book. Its literary quality is not that great, the emotional harmony with the increasingly more infantile american public signals the takeover of teeagers of the public life. We all saw the results. This is the basic affect of liberalism, with no positive vision of a possible action. However, even after 9/11/01, my son is compelled by the New York State to read this second rate fiction, alongside with " The Chocolate War", "Lisa Bright and Dark" and other "pulp-fictiony" type of "STUFF".
How about some Faulkner, Hemingway, Dreiser, Dos Passos, Vidal, even Zane.
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Summary: A book I should have read 40 years ago...
Review: A book I should have read 40 years ago. A brilliant portrayal of cynical adolescence and the transition to adulthood. Brought to life in the journey made by Holden Caulfield through New York City in a weekend. Holden seeks to find his way out of confusing darkness following his expulsion from school. Captures the growing pains out of childhood and the doubts and fears of moving forward into adulthood in a most stunning way. The image of the catcher in the rye saving children from falling into the abyss of adulthood, as seen by Holden, is memorable. Rightly acclaimed as one of the great literary works of the 20th century.
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