The Catcher in the Rye - My Overall Opinion

My overall opinion of The Catcher in the Rye is that of high regard. I believe J.D. Salinger does a magnificent job of writing a novel that basically revolves around nothing. It is not every day that I find a book about some teenage boy and his adventures in New York that actually is able to interest me. To be honest, I would not change one thing about the novel. I loved the tone, the 1950’s dialect, and even was impressed with the ending. For me, Salinger gets five stars for The Catcher in the Rye because of its overall creativity and inspiring message.

I have heard a lot of criticism from friends and family regarding the book to be a literary failure. They say that the vulgarity and attitude of the novel is too much and ruins it. But in my opinion, I think that is what makes the book so intriguing. Maybe, just maybe, the book about a teenager and his struggle to accept growing up, is not intended for older generations to read, but hey, that is just a guess. I think Salinger anticipated for younger generations around Holden’s age, to read the book and learn something from the protagonist’s journey into adulthood. Anyway, back to the vulgarity and attitude. Toward the end of the novel, Holden finds a very offensive word written on the stairs at his old school (Salinger 201). The author does not hold back with the word either. He actually uses in multiple times, along with a few other “cuss words”. I have heard the words thousands of times, so they do not intimidate me when reading them. I think they add to the novel’s straightforward tone. I mean come on; does someone really write the proper way of saying a bad word (as contradictory as that sounds) on a wall their trying to destroy? No. Salinger definitely makes his novel more realistic by adding vulgarity, even though some people do not like it. I think they should get over it, just saying.

So anyway, back to the point. I absolutely love this novel. It is a very interesting and inspiring work of art. I actually want to read more books by Salinger because he left me very satisfied with The Catcher in the Rye. Overall, great book.

Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown and, 1991. Print.