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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
The Catcher in the Rye is a coming-of-age story told through the eyes of teenaged Holden Caulfield who has just been kicked out of school and decides to spend the next two days wandering aimlessly around New York City. He spends this time noting his observations of the world in all his angst, joy, sorrow and bitterness. It is classic adolescent reality with a touch of cynicism and typical youthful frustration.
This book is a classic for a reason. Despite being written in 1951, the raw emotions that plague teenagers of any era are openly and plainly described in Holden’s wry voice. His view of the world, of adults, of the phoniness of it all belongs to no one generation.
I read Catcher in the Rye for the first time when I was sixteen and, for me, Holden was something of a hero. He put into words so much of what I was already feeling. He understood the nuances of my generation’s complaints about the world we live in, the frustration for the adults that had so many unreasonable expectations of us, and the frightening uncertainty of what the future was all about.
Then I read it again when I was in my late twenties, and I had children of my own. My children were just toddlers at the time, but I began to feel a bit sorry for Holden this time around. I wished that I could tell him that it isn’t really all that bad. And yet, I wasn’t so far removed from my own adolescence that I didn’t understand where he was coming from. I remembered, really remembered, what a frustrating and difficult time those teenage years were.
I then read it again in my thirties with teenagers of my own and began to see Holden’s angst reflected in my own children’s faces. I felt sorry for them both. And, by now, I was just enough removed from my own adolescence and so entrenched in my own parental struggles, that I was frustrated with Holden. He just didn’t understand that the adults of the world are just trying their damnedest to get it right too. That the struggle isn’t reserved for just teenagers. What a selfish thought. I didn’t much like Holden then and I sure hoped none of my angsty teenagers would meet a Holden of their own.
I’m in my fifties now, my children are grown, and I just finished Catcher in the Rye once again. This time around I found Holden’s voice a beautiful, poetic anthem for a timeless, adolescent truth. I appreciate his frustration and wish I could talk to him, to tell him that it’s okay to not understand, not to know who he is just yet, to be frustrated because nothing seems to fit the way that seems reasonable. It’s perfectly alright to think that adults don’t understand because they probably don’t – or, at least, they have forgotten. Now, like so many of the adults that Holden meets in those few days of wandering, I would love to have a minute or two to mentor him, only for him to think me a little ridiculous and out-of-touch.
This book, for all its greatness and brilliance, is not for everyone all the time. There is a lot of brooding and roaming and mundaneness. It is a moody book and one that is woven together with vast ideas spoken through common occurrences and plain actions. I’ve heard it called ‘boring’ and ‘pointless’ and I wouldn’t disagree with them. Not because it’s true, but because it would be true if you didn’t approach it in the right mood. Holden Caulfield himself is often ‘not in the mood’, so it’s perfectly okay if you aren’t either. But maybe hold off reading this until you are.
This book is a classic for a reason. Despite being written in 1951, the raw emotions that plague teenagers of any era are openly and plainly described in Holden’s wry voice. His view of the world, of adults, of the phoniness of it all belongs to no one generation.
I read Catcher in the Rye for the first time when I was sixteen and, for me, Holden was something of a hero. He put into words so much of what I was already feeling. He understood the nuances of my generation’s complaints about the world we live in, the frustration for the adults that had so many unreasonable expectations of us, and the frightening uncertainty of what the future was all about.
Then I read it again when I was in my late twenties, and I had children of my own. My children were just toddlers at the time, but I began to feel a bit sorry for Holden this time around. I wished that I could tell him that it isn’t really all that bad. And yet, I wasn’t so far removed from my own adolescence that I didn’t understand where he was coming from. I remembered, really remembered, what a frustrating and difficult time those teenage years were.
I then read it again in my thirties with teenagers of my own and began to see Holden’s angst reflected in my own children’s faces. I felt sorry for them both. And, by now, I was just enough removed from my own adolescence and so entrenched in my own parental struggles, that I was frustrated with Holden. He just didn’t understand that the adults of the world are just trying their damnedest to get it right too. That the struggle isn’t reserved for just teenagers. What a selfish thought. I didn’t much like Holden then and I sure hoped none of my angsty teenagers would meet a Holden of their own.
I’m in my fifties now, my children are grown, and I just finished Catcher in the Rye once again. This time around I found Holden’s voice a beautiful, poetic anthem for a timeless, adolescent truth. I appreciate his frustration and wish I could talk to him, to tell him that it’s okay to not understand, not to know who he is just yet, to be frustrated because nothing seems to fit the way that seems reasonable. It’s perfectly alright to think that adults don’t understand because they probably don’t – or, at least, they have forgotten. Now, like so many of the adults that Holden meets in those few days of wandering, I would love to have a minute or two to mentor him, only for him to think me a little ridiculous and out-of-touch.
This book, for all its greatness and brilliance, is not for everyone all the time. There is a lot of brooding and roaming and mundaneness. It is a moody book and one that is woven together with vast ideas spoken through common occurrences and plain actions. I’ve heard it called ‘boring’ and ‘pointless’ and I wouldn’t disagree with them. Not because it’s true, but because it would be true if you didn’t approach it in the right mood. Holden Caulfield himself is often ‘not in the mood’, so it’s perfectly okay if you aren’t either. But maybe hold off reading this until you are.
3-3,5/5
Hear me out...as a book it was kinda boring to read at times since there was no major plot in it, but i do appreciate the meaning behind it.
The character is an a-hole but also very relatable which i loved! I think we can all find ourselves in him a lot or a little
Hear me out...as a book it was kinda boring to read at times since there was no major plot in it, but i do appreciate the meaning behind it.
The character is an a-hole but also very relatable which i loved! I think we can all find ourselves in him a lot or a little
Genial título, un protagonista como pocos y una trama sencilla pero profunda. Con una gran aproximación al típico adolescente, el autor logra un personaje acertado y muy bien construido. La novela es un retrato de la clase alta de New york a través de los ojos de un adolescente inteligente y desorientado.
Also ranks in my favorite books of all time, and one of the few I've read more than once already. The last time I read it, I was 17. It will be interesting to see if I still think so highly of it.
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Themes or characters that resonated with me: I can really relate to Holden's simultaneous desire for genuine connection but also isolation in the face of inauthenticity. He seems to value the authenticity that comes with innocence of youth. I wonder if Holden's attachment to these ideas is a result of him not having fully coped with the loss of his brother. He shows a care for kids with his sister and also his description of being a catcher in the rye. He also seems to want to form a connection with the couple of kids he meets at the museum while waiting for Phoebe. He also shows appreciation for the authenticity of the nuns he encounters. They have a real conversation with him as opposed to most others that he encounters that don't want to be bothered.
Emotions, thoughts, or memories it brought up in me: I felt a sense of relief that there wasn't a tragic ending. During the scene on the carousel I could feel the anxiety building that Phoebe was somehow going to meet a tragic end. Instead Holden just has a good time. He seems to feel a sense of relief, as I did as well, that he has found a moment to enjoy. I'm sure he wanted to freeze that moment in time, just as the things in the museum were always the same way. I think I can strongly empathize with Holden's inner dialogue and feeling of detachment due to the lack of real connection with anyone. I can relate to the disappointment he feels when someone he respects has let him down (Antolini). I have felt this multiple times, when a loved one has revealed a trait that changes how I feel about them. I think it was interesting the way Holden ends up saying he misses some people when they're not around, even if the "kill" him or he thinks they're phony when he's actually with them. The isolated feeling is relatable. This doesn't play into the analysis of the book but it is crazy that I was reading this book at the same time I had to put Allie down.
Opinion about the author or writing style: While reading this book the language flowed very naturally for me. It made it very easy to get through chapters quickly. The stream of consciousness just keeps flowing and its hard to put it down.
Favorite Passage:
"One thing about packing depressed me a little. I had to pack these brand-new ice skates my mother had practically just sent me a couple of days before. That depressed me. I could see my mother going in Spaulding's and asking the salesman a million dopy questions —and here I was getting the ax again. It made me feel pretty sad. She bought me the wrong kind of skates —I wanted racing skates and she bought hockey —but it made me sad any-way. Almost every time somebody gives me a present, it ends up making me sad."
This reminded me so much of the time my father packed a banana for me for school lunch, and it got squished in my backpack. I felt sad, and now more than 30 years later I still have a melancholy reaction thinking about it.
My ratings-
Writing Style: 90
Relatability: 95
Originality: 90
Personal impact: 85
Plot: 80
Emotions, thoughts, or memories it brought up in me: I felt a sense of relief that there wasn't a tragic ending. During the scene on the carousel I could feel the anxiety building that Phoebe was somehow going to meet a tragic end. Instead Holden just has a good time. He seems to feel a sense of relief, as I did as well, that he has found a moment to enjoy. I'm sure he wanted to freeze that moment in time, just as the things in the museum were always the same way. I think I can strongly empathize with Holden's inner dialogue and feeling of detachment due to the lack of real connection with anyone. I can relate to the disappointment he feels when someone he respects has let him down (Antolini). I have felt this multiple times, when a loved one has revealed a trait that changes how I feel about them. I think it was interesting the way Holden ends up saying he misses some people when they're not around, even if the "kill" him or he thinks they're phony when he's actually with them. The isolated feeling is relatable. This doesn't play into the analysis of the book but it is crazy that I was reading this book at the same time I had to put Allie down.
Opinion about the author or writing style: While reading this book the language flowed very naturally for me. It made it very easy to get through chapters quickly. The stream of consciousness just keeps flowing and its hard to put it down.
Favorite Passage:
"One thing about packing depressed me a little. I had to pack these brand-new ice skates my mother had practically just sent me a couple of days before. That depressed me. I could see my mother going in Spaulding's and asking the salesman a million dopy questions —and here I was getting the ax again. It made me feel pretty sad. She bought me the wrong kind of skates —I wanted racing skates and she bought hockey —but it made me sad any-way. Almost every time somebody gives me a present, it ends up making me sad."
This reminded me so much of the time my father packed a banana for me for school lunch, and it got squished in my backpack. I felt sad, and now more than 30 years later I still have a melancholy reaction thinking about it.
My ratings-
Writing Style: 90
Relatability: 95
Originality: 90
Personal impact: 85
Plot: 80
IM TIRED OF EVERYONE BEING OBSESSED W THIS BOOK. HE IS INSUFFERABLE AND ITS NOT A FUN READ
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes