Book Talk: The Catcher in the Rye

Hello, welcome to Book Talk. I'm going to chat about The Catcher in the Rye today and I don't promise to avoid spoilers. I like to discuss books with those who have already read them. Let's dig in there and hash out what we liked, what we didn't and talk about all the good stuff, INCLUDING spoilers. So if you are one of those "Uh, dun't spoil meh!" readers, then these book talks may not be for you. But if you have read the book and want to vent your frustrations or share the high of your favorite scene, by all means, read on and let's chat in the comments below.

And now, for today's Book Talk:

I feel as if everyone who claims themselves to be a reader must read this book. It's one of those titles that is thrown around as a good book or something. However, now that I've read it, I can't remember one thing I heard about the book before I opened its covers. So I'll just tell you what I thought of it.

First of all, I wanted to keep reading as soon as I read the first sentence. "If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you'll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth." Who wouldn't? I felt like someone was talking to me, and I wanted to keep hearing what he was saying.

The book is surprisingly easy to read in spite of breaking a butt load of grammar rules. Some information is even repeated shortly after it's said. But you catch on quickly that it's just the main kid's way of talking.

This story is told by a 16-year-old boy who has just been kicked out of Pencey, a prep school in Pennsylvania. I was three quarters of the way through the book without having a darn clue what "the catcher in the rye" would turn out to be. The cover of my copy had an old-fashioned abstract-ish ink drawing of a carousel horse drowned in an orange red color. The title is in mustard yellow at the top, backed by the outdated red I just mentioned. At the bottom is another drawing, the skyline of a city that turns out to be New York City, with park benches in the foreground. This cover does not give me one single hint as to the meaning of "the catcher in the rye." This phrase sounds very much like the title of a classic but leaves one hard pressed to know how it relates to the story itself. To Kill a Mockingbird is another one of those for me. Lord of the Flies is another one. These titles are merrily thrown around, even by those who have never read them, and I always get the sense that they are great books of literature. Well, I figured I'd see for myself if The Catcher in the Rye was one of those great books of literature.

The story takes a great rambling walk through this sixteen-year-old kid's mind as he ponders human behavior, his compulsive care for a girl he knew back when, and what the heck he should do with his future self. There was one moment of hope for me when he spends the night (almost) at the home of his previous English teacher. After waking to find the man petting his head, the kid is out of there, even though it's the middle of the night. I found that scene rather funny and cringey at the same time. It did let the air out of my sails about the advice the English teacher had given him not too long before, "I think that one of these days you're going to have to find out where you want to go. And then you've got to start going there. But immediately. You can't afford to lose a minute. Not you." You can find the entire scene that advice came out of in Chapter 24. That's my favorite chapter. I admit, though, the advice is more impactful if you read Chapters 1-23 first. After the kid woke to find his teacher petting him, I naturally questioned the advice he had given. I concluded that I still like the advice, more than anything I've read of late, and even if the teacher's motives were a little bent, it was still good advice.

Well, that's my opinion on The Catcher in the Rye. I can't say as I would call it a great book of literature, but I sure enjoyed it. It influenced me. Heck, I feel like I'm talking like the main character, Holden Caulfield, and can't stop myself. (That is not a brag, as if I can write as good as J.D. Salinger. I'm juss sayin' I feel like the kid got into my head and his style of talking is staining the words on my page here.) I love his style of talking. Holden felt very real to me. I could relate to his strict college days and his confused way of thinking from my own teen years through my early twenties.

Well, thank you for reading today's book talk. Have you read The Catcher in the Rye? What did you think the title meant? Were you satisfied with the book when you finished it? Leave your comments in the answers below or meet me on Twitter and Facebook and let's talk! Oh, and if you're still wondering what the title was referring to, I'll tweet the answer tomorrow on Twitter.


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