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The Catcher in the Rye | 
 enlarge | Author: J.d. Salinger
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Category: Book
Buy New: $17.96
New (1) Used (6) Collectible (1) from $4.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  2774 reviews
Sales Rank: 736443
Format: Import
Media: Paperback
Pages: 208
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 7 x 4.3 x 0.6
ISBN: 0140237496
EAN: 9780140237498
ASIN: 0140237496
Publication Date: 1994
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: We are spezialized in Foreign/German language books. Ships next day. Please allow 2-4 weeks for delivery.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 2769 more reviews...
 The place where the youth novel was born October 13, 2008
Because this is one of the most heavily reviewed books on Amazon, I will not at this late date attempt to do a comprehensive review. I'll merely focus on one reason this is such an important book and then comment on one odd yet persistent misreading of the novel.
First, this is the first novel that was written with the narrative voice of a disgruntled youth. In fact, one of the most amazing developments in the 1950s was the birth of Youth. Before the fifties there was no sharp chasm dividing young and old. There were, of course, differences between being young and being older, but the main difference was mainly that you were merely younger, not that you embraced a completely different culture. CATCHER IN THE RYE anticipated everything that was about to happen in youth culture within the next few years. No novel had been written in slang before, at least not in youth slang. You would be a very rich man or woman if you could count the number of times that Holden says something like "I'm not kidding" or "I can't stand it." Salinger's genius for maintaining a consistent narrative voice from beginning to end is unquestionably one of the novel's greatest claims to fame.
The second thing I wanted to mention is the rather bizarre turn that so many people consier Holden Caulfield a hero. If anything is clear in the novel, it is that Holden is a profoundly troubled, disturbed, emotionally stunted and sick individual. The events he narrates are cleary done so in a mental health institution. For all his railing against phonies, no one in the book is as phony as Holden. To appropriate the language of existentialism, he lives a completely inauthentic life. But sadly the only person who calls him on the pathetic existence he is living is his teacher that Holden suspects of making sexual overtures near the end. But clearly the events in the novel presaged some kind of emotional collapse. Holden at age 17 in the mental institution writes about significant events leading up to his collapse at age 16. That anyone could view Holden as a role model or a hero is unfathomable.
I reread this because I'm about the read the Frank Portman novel KING DORK, in which CATCHER IN THE RYE features prominently. I had not read CATCHER since college, but I was pleased to discover that it was as excellent as I remembered it being. I wouldn't rate it as one of the greatest books that I've read, but it is unquestionably one of the most important American novels of the past century.
 Horrible Book, Annoying Character October 4, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I don't see how so many people rated this book so highly. I spent precious time reading this, that I'll never get back. If you want to waste your time reading about some stupid, snotty kid's boring experience in New York, then go ahead, read it. This book is not a classic and all copies should be burned out of existence, they really should.
Will stick with you October 1, 2008
This is the kind of book that people of all ages remember their whole lives. It's indescribable how the story can sweep you off into Holden's life, the angst he feels, and the time in which he lived. Truly a great work that is worth reading if you have not and worth reading again if you have.
 Much Overrated October 1, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
At the risk of offending all the fans--this book should not have been banned because of the cursing or the sexual references. It should have been banned because it is uninteresting and tortuous to read. The sentences and the dialogue are so annoying they make me want to punch Holden Caulfield myself. I understand that was what the author was going for, but it doesn't make it any more palatable. I also understand that the novel was groundbreaking in its time. Regardless, I lost interest about 70 pages into the book and moved on. This is no classic.
 This is an American classic????????????? October 1, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Wow! Kind of fun to read, but a classic? I don't think so.
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