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The Catcher in the Rye J D Salinger Books

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The Catcher in the Rye J D Salinger Books

If you really want to hear about it, when I told my story over fifty years ago, I thought it'd be just a bunch of phony people who read it on a bus or something and then it'd be thrown in the garbage and that'd be it. But, for some goddam reason, everyone wants to keep hearing my story, and it's corny as hell, really. They all read this book with pies in their eyes and try to figure out the darndest things, like what it means when I ask the cab driver about where the ducks in the pond go in the winter. Did it ever occur to anyone that I may just care a whole hell of a lot about ducks?

When I was thrown out of Pencey before that Thanksgiving, my life was all but over. Sure, I knew that Stradlater and all the others would have swell jobs down on Park Avenue someday, but at that time, I sure as hell wouldn't. So, except for scoring with Sally Hayes or some guy's little sister or something, it was all just downhill from there and I just wanted to get home and see Phoebe and ride the carousel. End of analysis.

Why my story is still discussed in colleges and prep schools is something I can't explain. It kills me. I'd have two hemorrhages if I'd known that those lousy few days in my life would still be talked about now that I'm your grandfather's age.

I'm here to tell you--yes, Holden, yours truly--that I grew up and moved on and you really ought to be hearing about the rest of my dismal life, which is rather downhill, to tell you the truth. I could go on about the phony run-ins I've had with the kids from my past. But, you know, now that they're ancient, with gray hair and all, I don't feel like discussing them. I really don't.

I hate it when I knew someone long ago and their face is like an old photograph in my mind and then they show up for real and they look all gray and old and nearly dead or something. It kills me, it really does. But, the funny part is that each person, deep inside, is still the same. They're just in a wrinkled body, is all. Take Ackerly, for instance. I saw old Acklerly ice skating at the park last winter, and he came over to talk and he still sits too close to me on the bench, and all he talked about was getting out of his wet clothes and taking a goddam shower. See, things stay the same.

So, enjoy this old tale from my past, but know that I grew old, just like you. I wish I could tell you fancy stories, like my brother, old D.B., out in Hollywood, who gets to meet all the stars. He's got more stories than you can shake a stick at, old D.B. does.

But me, I'm just sitting here alone on the edge of some crazy cliff, watching ducks flying overhead and thinking. I can still see myself in the glass eye of that carousel horse in Central Park. The horse has fresh white paint, and in the reflection, I look the way I remember myself. Even now. After all these years.

--Holden Caulfield, autumn 2011


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The Catcher in the Rye J D Salinger Books Reviews

The Catcher in the Rye was a book full with a lot of great imagery and a lot of thought put into it. The book is a very easy to read , it can be read very quickly and very easy to understand.
I enjoyed reading this book due to the fact that the main character Holden Caulfield is a 16 year old boy growing up. Holden struggles with deciding whether he is grown up or if he is still a kid. Recently , getting kicked out of his school Pency Prep before Christmas Break due to poor grades and only being able to pass one class, he decides to go on a journey through New York. As he starts his adventure he talks about people he knows and cares about. Holden talks about how smart , red headed and friendly his brother Allie is and how he passed away due to Leukemia. Holden also tells the reader about his other two siblings D.B and Phoebe. D.B is Holden's brother in Hollywood and Phoebe is his little sister who still leaves with her parents.
As the story goes on Holden claims that everyone he meets is a phony. Not only does he say that but he also lies to everyone he meets. He either changes his name or makes up a story on how he got there and why. Through out the book Holden shows that all he wants to do is sit down and talk to someone about the problems he goes through in his life but when someone tries to get close to him he pushes them away and makes up lies on why he can't be there with them and leaves. He mentions a lot a girl who used to live near by, Jane Gallagher . Holden explains how close he used to be to her when he has a child , and every adventure they did together. Later to reveal he is in a mental institute waiting to get out and go back to school.
The most controversial part about this book is the fact that Holden is a heavy smoker. He tries to lie about his age just so he can get a couple drinks at a bar or he gets people to do it for him. Holden also uses a lot of profanity during the story. He also hires a prostitute in one part of the book. He talks about his sexual life and who he would like to be with. Definitely how a person going through puberty would feel like.
I would recommend this book to kids who understand what Holden is going through or can relate to what he does and why he does, but then be of an age 16 or order due to the strong language he uses. Very controversial but a very realistic book.
If you really want to hear about it, when I told my story over fifty years ago, I thought it'd be just a bunch of phony people who read it on a bus or something and then it'd be thrown in the garbage and that'd be it. But, for some goddam reason, everyone wants to keep hearing my story, and it's corny as hell, really. They all read this book with pies in their eyes and try to figure out the darndest things, like what it means when I ask the cab driver about where the ducks in the pond go in the winter. Did it ever occur to anyone that I may just care a whole hell of a lot about ducks?

When I was thrown out of Pencey before that Thanksgiving, my life was all but over. Sure, I knew that Stradlater and all the others would have swell jobs down on Park Avenue someday, but at that time, I sure as hell wouldn't. So, except for scoring with Sally Hayes or some guy's little sister or something, it was all just downhill from there and I just wanted to get home and see Phoebe and ride the carousel. End of analysis.

Why my story is still discussed in colleges and prep schools is something I can't explain. It kills me. I'd have two hemorrhages if I'd known that those lousy few days in my life would still be talked about now that I'm your grandfather's age.

I'm here to tell you--yes, Holden, yours truly--that I grew up and moved on and you really ought to be hearing about the rest of my dismal life, which is rather downhill, to tell you the truth. I could go on about the phony run-ins I've had with the kids from my past. But, you know, now that they're ancient, with gray hair and all, I don't feel like discussing them. I really don't.

I hate it when I knew someone long ago and their face is like an old photograph in my mind and then they show up for real and they look all gray and old and nearly dead or something. It kills me, it really does. But, the funny part is that each person, deep inside, is still the same. They're just in a wrinkled body, is all. Take Ackerly, for instance. I saw old Acklerly ice skating at the park last winter, and he came over to talk and he still sits too close to me on the bench, and all he talked about was getting out of his wet clothes and taking a goddam shower. See, things stay the same.

So, enjoy this old tale from my past, but know that I grew old, just like you. I wish I could tell you fancy stories, like my brother, old D.B., out in Hollywood, who gets to meet all the stars. He's got more stories than you can shake a stick at, old D.B. does.

But me, I'm just sitting here alone on the edge of some crazy cliff, watching ducks flying overhead and thinking. I can still see myself in the glass eye of that carousel horse in Central Park. The horse has fresh white paint, and in the reflection, I look the way I remember myself. Even now. After all these years.

--Holden Caulfield, autumn 2011