Upon first reading The Catcher in the Rye, I was struck by the simplicity in which it was written. I was drawn to it by the comedy in it, but it was not until I did a research paper on it that I discovered exactly how important of a book that it is. When reading it with no prior knowledge of its effect on society, you will enjoy the exploits of young Holden, a rebel who has been kicked out of school and is traveling home, but you will not fully appreciate the importance of this novel.

It was written by J.D. Salinger, who had written only short stories before this. During his era, America was coming off of two world wars and the great depression. Life was finally good for most Americans, and there was an ideal that families had to be perfect, children had to be uniform, and at the time youths wanted to break out and be themselves, but they were made to be like their parents instead.

The kids were waiting for something to spark a rebellion, and The Catcher in the Rye did just that. Instead of depicting life like Leave it to Beaver, Salinger show how life really was. Young Holden deals with sex, alcohol, has an encounter with a prostitute, gets in a fight, and uses profanity frequently.

This book was banned liberally for a long time, but was embraced by youths everywhere. This book broke the stereotype and set the tone for a new generation.

Learn more about this author, Frank Babrove.
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