I suspect it's one of those books you need to read by a certain age for it really resonate.
And sometimes, not even then.
(Everyone in my class loved that book but me. I thought Holden was whiny and irritating.)
Angel: Connor, this is Spike and Illyria. Guys, this is Connor. Connor: Hi. umm...I like your outfit. Illyria: Your body warms. This one is lusting after me. Connor: Oh...no, I--I--it's just that it's the outfit. I guess I've had a thing for older women. Angel: They were supposed to fix that.
'Origin'
Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.
There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."
Jessica - Jan 28, 2010 10:26:56 am PST #10841 of 28359
And then Ortus came and said "It's Ortin' time" and they all Orted off into the sunset
§ ita § - Jan 28, 2010 10:27:26 am PST #10842 of 28359
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
I thought Holden was whiny and irritating
Me too.
Amy - Jan 28, 2010 10:28:34 am PST #10843 of 28359
Because books.
I didn't love Holden. But I did love Franny and Zooey.
flea - Jan 28, 2010 10:31:07 am PST #10844 of 28359
information libertarian
Holden *is* whiny and irritating. He's a depressed teenager.
I love For Esme with Love and Squalor. A lot of Salinger is too overdone for me, but that one has restraint.
Polter-Cow - Jan 28, 2010 10:37:23 am PST #10845 of 28359
What else besides ramen can you scoop? YOU CAN SCOOP THIS WORLD FROM DARKNESS!
I read it in high school, and I don't really remember what I thought about it. I don't think I LOVED it, but I didn't dislike it either.
megan walker - Jan 28, 2010 11:01:45 am PST #10846 of 28359
"What kind of magical sunshine and lollipop world do you live in? Because you need to be medicated."-SFist
I thought Holden was whiny and irritating.
Oh God, yes. I think it was standard non-required prep school reading, so, I read it, but I didn't enjoy it.
Fred Pete - Jan 28, 2010 11:02:23 am PST #10847 of 28359
Ann, that's a ferret.
When I was a sophomore in high school, our English teacher gave us a 3-page list of Books Every Educated Person Should Read. The assignment: Pick one and read it. Half a dozen picked Catcher in the Rye. (I chose Brave New World.)
I did read Catcher a couple of years later. Holden is a well-drawn portrait of a certain side of adolescence -- he's supposed to be a whiny, irritating anti-hero. So on that score, I'd call Catcher a good novel that accomplishes what it sets out to do. But it certainly isn't an enjoyable read, and I fail to see how multiple generations of teenagers adopted it as The Ultimate Novel.
Kathy A - Jan 28, 2010 11:04:19 am PST #10848 of 28359
We're very stretchy. - Connie Neil
I read Catcher in 8th grade, and I thought Holden was whiny and irritating. But I don't have much patience with whiny characters--Hardy's Tess drove me bonkers. I just want to shake her soooo hard!
Tom Scola - Jan 28, 2010 11:04:19 am PST #10849 of 28359
Remember that the frontier of the Rebellion is everywhere. And even the smallest act of insurrection pushes our lines forward.
When I was in junior high, my teacher suggested reading the book as if Holden's narrative was his talking to a psychiatrist.
Sophia Brooks - Jan 28, 2010 11:04:27 am PST #10850 of 28359
Cats to become a rabbit should gather immediately now here
I think he is much less likely to appeal to "today's youth" whatever that is. But I did like the book, and read it on my own, not for class.
Actually, I wonder if Holden Caulfield was a proto-hipster?
ETA: I also liked Tess.