caitlink's review against another edition
3.0
-loses points for the homophobia, sexism, and racism
-Holden seems to be asexual coded
-Holden seems to be asexual coded
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Homophobia, Sexism, and Sexual content
liz_e's review
challenging
dark
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The suicidal urges, the violent thoughts, the hate he’s internalized for himself— people around him— the world— the impulses, the urge to just make things worse. He’s miserable. There’s just this glimmer of hope and love that keeps him hanging on. And I understand why some people think all of these thoughts are unrealistic… but as someone living With depression… it’s the most realistic thing I’ve ever read. This book is so important to me. I only wish it didn’t come from the point of view of a terribly sexist kid. But it does. So it’s complicated. But it’s important.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Death, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence
Minor: Sexual content
lemonyholden's review
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
this is my favorite book. while there is almost no plot the book still manages to entertain you (in my opinion.) the book does have a bit of sexism and homophobia (although some have questioned if holden is gay himself.) which should be kinda expected due to the time period and the ideas people had at that time. i recommend for you to read this as a teen, if you can.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Sexism
Minor: Child death, Grief, and War
teaskate's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
The Book was fine.It was not a bad read but I did get a bit sleepy ,while reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Mental illness
Moderate: Racial slurs, Death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Suicide, Racism, and Sexism
moonlightamelia's review against another edition
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
although this is colloquially known as the incel bible, i feel there is so much more we can take from this book in a modern interpretation. the quintessential dissection of the american white boy, i found it fascinating to examine holden caulfield’s psyche and understand the complexity of his insufferable and unreliable condition and superiority complex, though not necessarily in the way Salinger intended - i almost understood this as a satire.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism
lizziertaft's review
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I was gifted this by my older sister when I was 18 and I never got around to reading it. She said it was intended to read before college, I didn’t understand until page 189. I found the words very comforting, unfortunately they came from a character who is suspect of preying on Holden sooo…He’s one of the many predators talked about in this book, to the point where I have to believe the author wanted us to understand how perverse men are.
The POV of Holden gets old quick. The book is slow and severely overrated. What many consider a classic, I think is just outdated and dull. I do have empathy for Holden and hope he found healing where it was he was getting help for at the end. He reminds me a lot of an old best friend I had, I’m convinced Holden was a Gemini moon.
The POV of Holden gets old quick. The book is slow and severely overrated. What many consider a classic, I think is just outdated and dull. I do have empathy for Holden and hope he found healing where it was he was getting help for at the end. He reminds me a lot of an old best friend I had, I’m convinced Holden was a Gemini moon.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexism, Cursing, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Grief, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Transphobia
harriet_dolby's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Until the last 4 pages, I hated this book, I felt it such a slog despite it being only 230 pages long. I think the rreason why this book is so liked is the same reason why I don’t like it- the ‘teenage agnst’ which plagues the book. I feel now, that despite being 16, I would of enjoyed this book more when I was 10-13, although I wouldn’t have understood the more adult themes.
The main plot of this book is that a privilidged boy gets kicked out of his boarding school (his time at the boarding school was described using his favourite word in the first 50 pages… crumby- which I didn’t really get) and has to wait around for 3 days until he can go home for christmas- when the normal term time ends, so his parents don’t expect anything. During this time, he drinks a lot and visits some people from his past such as previous ex-girlfriends. He also tries to sleep with a sex worker but he gets too nervous and gets into trouble about it. The only parts I liked were hearing about him and his sister and when there are the symbolic moments- the catcher in the rye (the children are playing amongst the rye bales and in order to stop the children from falling off the cliff there is a catcher- the catcher in the rye which is symbolically what Holden relates to) and near the end when he feels himself falling everytime he crosses the road (in which he says that he is closer to his cousin, who has died- perhaps showing how due to his sleep deprivation, he questions his mortality, subsequently after this moment he undergoes some character development and spends more time with his sister and becomes more sympathetic to her).
My favourite quotes
-last line ‘dont ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody’
- a quote by the psycoanalyst- Wilhelm Stekel
‘The mark of the immature man is thathe wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one’
The main plot of this book is that a privilidged boy gets kicked out of his boarding school (his time at the boarding school was described using his favourite word in the first 50 pages… crumby- which I didn’t really get) and has to wait around for 3 days until he can go home for christmas- when the normal term time ends, so his parents don’t expect anything. During this time, he drinks a lot and visits some people from his past such as previous ex-girlfriends. He also tries to sleep with a sex worker but he gets too nervous and gets into trouble about it. The only parts I liked were hearing about him and his sister and when there are the symbolic moments- the catcher in the rye (the children are playing amongst the rye bales and in order to stop the children from falling off the cliff there is a catcher- the catcher in the rye which is symbolically what Holden relates to) and near the end when he feels himself falling everytime he crosses the road (in which he says that he is closer to his cousin, who has died- perhaps showing how due to his sleep deprivation, he questions his mortality, subsequently after this moment he undergoes some character development and spends more time with his sister and becomes more sympathetic to her).
My favourite quotes
-last line ‘dont ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody’
- a quote by the psycoanalyst- Wilhelm Stekel
‘The mark of the immature man is thathe wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one’
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief and Sexism
bella_mckinnon's review
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Was initially very dismissive and judgemental because Holden comes off as this angsty and cynical kid which I found annoying, but upon further reading I came to really appreciate his character.
Particularly his honesty, that his goodness does kind of shine underneath and in a subtle way, like how he hated how people yelled “Digression” at the kids who were really nervous or really excited about their oral exam topics, or how he’d rub off all the “Fuck you” lines that were written on walls because some kids might see them and be confronted by it or ruminate about it. He’s not a terrible person, to me. He’s a depressed teenager and as is common with depressed teens, particularly depressed teen boys, it’s manifesting as angst and cynicism.
But, I really came to appreciate Holden’s character. I realised that how he is reminded me of how I was between the ages of 14 and 16. Edgy, angsty, cynical but very depressed. I kind of ‘got it’ after a while and enjoyed reading more.
I had to look past my initial prejudices of him being whiny though. Once done, it was a great book to me. 5/5 would read again and again.
Particularly his honesty, that his goodness does kind of shine underneath and in a subtle way, like how he hated how people yelled “Digression” at the kids who were really nervous or really excited about their oral exam topics, or how he’d rub off all the “Fuck you” lines that were written on walls because some kids might see them and be confronted by it or ruminate about it. He’s not a terrible person, to me. He’s a depressed teenager and as is common with depressed teens, particularly depressed teen boys, it’s manifesting as angst and cynicism.
But, I really came to appreciate Holden’s character. I realised that how he is reminded me of how I was between the ages of 14 and 16. Edgy, angsty, cynical but very depressed. I kind of ‘got it’ after a while and enjoyed reading more.
I had to look past my initial prejudices of him being whiny though. Once done, it was a great book to me. 5/5 would read again and again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Cursing
Moderate: Sexism and Sexual content
Minor: Sexual harassment and War
mme_carton's review
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Death, Gore, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
grace_cr1's review
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexism, Alcohol, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Suicide, Vomit, Death, Alcoholism, Child death, Cursing, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Grief, Homophobia, Mental illness, and Cancer