I've always been a little behind with things- I tend to buy those amazing Winter boots a season late or pick up a new phone a few months after everyone else. And at the age of 27 I have astonishingly only just read the JD Salinger classic The Catcher in the Rye- and I adored it. You would have to be, in my opinion, from another planet to not immediately appreciate the standard of writing, story telling and ability to create such a timeless piece of literature- even if the book was not to your taste.
The character of Holden Caulfield is such a complex product of teenage angst, insecurities and emotion and it's no surprise he goes down as one of the most interesting and diverse fictional characters in literature history. Salinger takes you into the mind of Caulfield by writing from his point of view in such a way that you are taken on a journey of experiences, no matter how small and insignificant however that give you such a pure insight into his troubled, confused and quite sad state of mind. Through characters such as Phoebe, Caulfield's younger sister, we catch a glimpse of his longing to be young and childlike again and free from adult emotions and problems and being surrounded by 'phonies' - yet by living quite an adult life admist the underworld of New York City. He remains unable to be satisfied by daily life and is searching for fulfillment and security that we never see him find. The paradox is that he admits to Phoebe that what he wants is to be the 'Catcher in the rye' saving children from falling off the cliff, perhaps into adulthood - something he is resisting. He sees Phoebe's innocence and is envious of it but has a strong instinct to protect her from 'phonies' and the outside world- when in fact she is the one helping him and ultimately helps him seek medical help in a psychiatric ward.
What struck me from the onset of reading this was how incredibly timeless it is- the book was written in 1951 and I had to keep reminding myself of this as I was constantly taken into the modern world through Salinger's descriptions of city life, human emotions and situations- it's no wonder the book and character Holden Caulfield still, today, receives so much critical acclaim and has been an inspiration to so many.
