The Catcher in the Rye

It's hard to review such a well-known and widely-read classic as The Catcher in the Rye with the intention of saying something worth reading. The bottom line is, it's a classic for a reason, and I give it a glowing recommendation. I should probably say a little bit more than that if this is to be classed as a review.

Since its publication in 1951, The Catcher in the Rye has proven to be an enormously controversial and influential work in the realm of pop culture... it's resonance can still be felt very much today in films (The Good Girl, Ordinary People) and books (Vernon God Little) alike. Its depiction of teen trauma and disaffection was on the cusp of a wave of rebellion that would come crashing down in the 1950s (the rock n roll generation, Rebel Without a Cause) and forever change the dynamics of the western family, generational interaction and adolescent expectations of society. It's been overdone now but it's cliched because it's true and the book is the seed of this mighty tree of discontent that broke through the concrete. Nonetheless, the anti-social behaviour of The Catcher in the Rye's narrator, Holden Caulfield, has ensured that the book remains eternally on America's 'Most Frequently Challenged Books' list (Most banned books).

As I said, The Catcher in the Rye concerns one Holden Caulfield, an embittered young man who tells us his story in the first person, detailing his sorry misadventures after running away from prep school and telling us how 'goddamn crumby' and 'phoney' everything is. It's a compelling voice, indelibly teenaged; embarrassing and defiant all at once. You might wonder where it's all going (I did) but once the wool is pulled away from our eyes and we're forced to see the narrator's world view in a less subjective manner it all becomes very clear.

I found myself very moved, especially in light of what the book's title refers to - it literally brought a lump to my throat, something I think only one or two other books have ever done before, and I was left reeling! I was genuinely surprised by how this book affected me. It truly is one of the great works of modern western literature. Go find a copy!