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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
medium-paced
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Didn’t love this one, though I found “De Daumier-Smith’s Blue Period” to be the most enjoyable, and partially enjoyed “A Perfect Day for Bananafish”.
Some great, some okay. "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is, of course, a classic. I also really enjoyed "Just Before the War with the Eskimos" and "The Laughing Man". I vacillate between adoring Salinger's hyper-detailing of characters actions and finding it pretentious. Best read in separate sittings.
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
J. D. Salinger's "Nine Stories" is a collection of the author's post WWII short stories. The stories reflect the world of trauma, recovery, and the need to conform of 1950's America. All nine stories are primarily dialogue and each has a bit of humor, a bit of reflection, and a healthy bit of darkness.
The psychology of Salinger's characters plays a prominent role in each story. From the PTSD sufferer in "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" to the weirdly spiritual "Teddy." Each character seems immersed in their own world with no more regard to objective reality than necessary. That includes the children in these stories. No one, it seems, has escaped the years of WWII without bearing psychic scars. It is very much a book of its time. Like another reviewer noted "it feels like you should have a cigarette in one hand and a highball in the other while reading Nine Stories."
Salinger's prose are sharp and crisp, his dialogue realistic but still very pointed. Each story will leave the reader with a lingering feeling of unease for reasons it is difficult to pin down. I would recommend "Nine Stories" to any short story fan or those interested in American society in the immediate post war era.
The psychology of Salinger's characters plays a prominent role in each story. From the PTSD sufferer in "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" to the weirdly spiritual "Teddy." Each character seems immersed in their own world with no more regard to objective reality than necessary. That includes the children in these stories. No one, it seems, has escaped the years of WWII without bearing psychic scars. It is very much a book of its time. Like another reviewer noted "it feels like you should have a cigarette in one hand and a highball in the other while reading Nine Stories."
Salinger's prose are sharp and crisp, his dialogue realistic but still very pointed. Each story will leave the reader with a lingering feeling of unease for reasons it is difficult to pin down. I would recommend "Nine Stories" to any short story fan or those interested in American society in the immediate post war era.
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes