I cannot recall what caused me to choose this book. I think I saw some mention of it in a documentary and the story seemed interesting. It is written from the point of view of Holden, a 17 year-old, well-off boy from New York. The story begins on a cold Saturday evening in early winter with Holden revealing that he is about to be expelled from yet another boarding school. The current school is named Pencey Prep and it is in the fictional town of Agerstown, Pennsylvania. Holden appears to be a fairly intelligent boy who has no desire to apply himself academically. His interactions with others are all superficial, with the exception of his little sister, Phoebe. Holden also reveals that he had a slightly younger brother, Allie, that died of leukemia, and an older brother that works as a Hollywood screenwriter. His dormitory mates all seem to annoy him in one way or another and he gets into a fistfight with a particularly athletic one named Stradlater, that results in Holden getting laid out. This, combined with the fact that he is soon to be expelled, makes Holden despondent. He is supposed to go home at semester’s end on Wednesday, but decides instead to have an adventure in New York before going home.
He leaves the school and catches a late train to New York with all his belongings in tow. Holden has flunked all his classes with the exception of literature. He appears to be a pretty good writer. I am guessing a great deal of Holden’s character is based off of the author, J.D. Salinger. Salinger admitted in interviews to being a poor student in his youth and having trouble fitting in at the private schools in New York and Pennsylvania that he attended. The thing that I find interesting about this book, is that you do not necessarily find Holden that likeable. He has serious personality flaws, however, you still find yourself rooting for him to find his way. I guess this is kind of like Bryan Cranston’s character, Walter White, in Breaking Bad, or James Gandolfini’s, character, Tony Soprano, in the Sopranos. These characters are not inherently good people because they say and do some awful things, but you still seem to be rooting for them.
(Artist’s depiction of the main character, Holden Caulfield)
Perhaps we have a soft spot for Holden’s character because he is dealing with the loss of his brother and does seem to treat his sister Phoebe pretty well. He also has a short moment where he is quite pleasant to a couple of nuns he meets in a diner. In most other interactions, however, he is grumpy and self-involved. He largely looks at everyone and everything in a negative manner and dreams of a life where he doesn’t have to interact with anyone. His character is definitely a misfit. Maybe that’s another reason to accept his shortcomings. Everyone likes the underdog.
In his New York escapades, he has a run-in with a prostitute and her pimp, an old classmate, and what appears to be deviant behavior from a former teacher of his. Throughout the book Holden smokes like a chimney, all the while acknowledging the harm he is doing to himself. In the end, Holden has thoughts of hitchhiking to the West coast, working a menial job, and living in a cabin in the woods outside of society, but feels unable to abandon his sister Phoebe to do so. Holden embodies what we all hate about in ourselves when we act selfishly, are ungrateful, and are less than optimistic. He seems to be ready to make changes in his life and strive to be a better person at the very end, but the reader is left being unsure. This is a very well-written book worthy of all the praise and accolades it has received. There are some references to songs, plays, and movies that are a bit dated, but this book was written before 1950, so that is to be expected. Oddly, the day I finished this book, one of the songs referenced, “Smoke gets in your eyes,” was playing at the pool while I was doing laps at my local gym. I did not recognize the title when I read it, but realized I had heard the song before. This book is an easy read and has a very unique “voice” that is well worth the time.