The Catcher in the Rye

For other uses, see The Catcher in the Rye (disambiguation).

The Catcher in the Rye
Cover features a drawing of a carousel horse (pole visible entering the neck and exiting below on the chest) with a city skyline visible in the distance under the hindquarters. The cover is two-toned: everything below the horse is whitish while the horse and everything above it is a reddish-orange. The title appears at the top in yellow letters against the reddish-orange background. It is split into two lines after "Catcher". At the bottom in the whitish background are the words "a novel by J. D. Salinger".
First edition cover
AuthorJ. D. Salinger
Cover artistE. Michael Mitchell[1][2]
LanguageEnglish
GenreRealistic fiction, Coming-of-age fiction
PublishedJuly 16, 1951[3]
PublisherLittle, Brown and Company
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint
Pages234 (may vary)
OCLC287628
813.54

The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by American author J. D. Salinger that was partially published in serial form in 1945–46 before being novelized in 1951. Originally intended for adults, it is often read by adolescents for its themes of angst and alienation, and as a critique of superficiality in society.[4][5] The novel also deals with themes of innocence, identity, belonging, loss, connection, sex, and depression. The main character, Holden Caulfield, has become an icon for teenage rebellion.[6] Caulfield, nearly of age, gives his opinion on a wide variety of topics as he narrates his recent life events.

The Catcher in the Rye has been translated widely.[7] About one million copies are sold each year, with total sales of more than 65 million books.[8] The novel was included on Time's 2005 list of the 100 best English-language novels written since 1923,[9] and it was named by Modern Library and its readers as one of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.[10][11][12] In 2003, it was listed at number 15 on the BBC's survey "The Big Read".

  1. ^ "CalArts Remembers Beloved Animation Instructor E. Michael Mitchell". Calarts.edu. Archived from the original on September 28, 2009. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
  2. ^ "50 Most Captivating Covers". Onlineuniversities.com. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference burgernyt was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Costello, Donald P., and Harold Bloom. "The Language of 'The Catcher in the Rye:' Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations: The Catcher in the Rye (2000): 11–20. Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. December 1, 2010.
  5. ^ "Carte Blanche: Famous Firsts". Booklist. November 15, 2000. Retrieved December 20, 2007.
  6. ^ Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Allusions By Elizabeth Webber, Mike Feinsilber p. 105
  7. ^ Magill, Frank N. (1991). "J. D. Salinger". Magill's Survey of American Literature. New York: Marshall Cavendish Corporation. p. 1803. ISBN 1-85435-437-X.
  8. ^ According to List of best-selling books. An earlier article says more than 20 million: Yardley, Jonathan (October 19, 2004). "J. D. Salinger's Holden Caulfield, Aging Gracelessly". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 21, 2007. It isn't just a novel, it's a dispatch from an unknown, mysterious universe, which may help explain the phenomenal sales it enjoys to this day: about 250,000 copies a year, with total worldwide sales over – probably way over – 10 million.
  9. ^ Grossman, Lev; Lacayo, Richard (October 16, 2005). "All-Time 100 Novels: The Complete List". Time.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference ALA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ List of most commonly challenged books from the list of the one hundred most important books of the 20th century by Radcliffe Publishing Course
  12. ^ Guinn, Jeff (August 10, 2001). "'Catcher in the Rye' still influences 50 years later" (fee required). Erie Times-News. Retrieved December 18, 2007. Alternate URL