Greatest Books of All Time : Midnight's Children by Author Salman Rushdie

Why Midnight's Children is Called the Booker of the Bookers

By Jini Maxin

For those looking for a racy, rousing read, kindly keep your hands off 'Midnight's Children'.

Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children - Winner of Best of the Booker, needless to say is a masterpiece in magical realism, brilliantly unfolded at a snail's pace. However, the novel's beauty lies in its style and not action. Nonetheless, a little familiarity with Indian history will make the novel a tad more interesting, given the allegorical references to India's social-political events strewn all across the story.

Hilarious and heartbreaking in equal measure, the story revolves are two children (in fact midnight's 1001 children) who were born at the precise instant of India's arrival at independence. Their destinies inextricably intertwined forever, thanks to the time of their births.

Saleem Sinai, the protagonist, when tumbled forth into the earth on Aug 15, 1947, was greeted by none other than Mr. Prime Minister's Letter. Yes Saleem was destiny's child. Born as an illegitimate son, he got all the good things that life had to offer, thanks to the nurse who without forethought swapped children just after their birth. Baby Saleem, naturally benefited in the process as he was entitled to all the care and riches of Shiva's household, Shiva, one of the 1001 children born at the same time, on the other end was relegated to the darkness of slums.

Noses and Knees, Nose and Knees. Saleem with his powerful nose could smell out every damn thing on this earth, be it the smell of anger or jealousy. Interestingly, he could read other minds and was endowed with the power of telepathy. Shiva on the other end had preternaturally powerful knees, knees that were exclusively used for pushing, shoving and crushing others. Though royal blood ran in his veins, his actions spoke otherwise. He turned out to be a brutish killer. Saleem, however, is portrayed as a nice fellow. His aberrations are shown in lighter vein, while Shiva's aberrations make you feel sick.

The use of the term 'optimism' is anesthetizing. The analogues employed are breathtaking. Numb as ice, clean as a slate, main fresh-water pipes which were city's lifelines began to blow fountains into the air like giant steel whales, tiny grain of grit in the sea of old age and so on. Philosophy dealt in the form of Snakes and Ladders. For every ladder you climb,a snake is just waiting around the corner; and for every snake a ladder will compensate. Very descriptive, simply explains the painstaking efforts put in by Rushdie. The story some time may seem long-winding, the language used may seem incomprehensible, but carry-on is the catchword here.

The political scenario post- Indian independence is nicely interwoven into the story. That's makes you wonder about Rushdie's brilliance. Rushdie dishes out everything history, politics, myth, food, magic, wit and dung all in one book, the partition of India and Pakistan, the power of "The Widow" Indira Gandhi, war and, finally the enforcement of martial law in the country.

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The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen : Greatest Books of All Time

Can You Be A Character In The Corrections
by Jonathan Franzen?

By Prasoon Kumar

While reading The Corrections, many readers felt glad they were not one of the characters, but could easily visualize themselves making the same mistakes they were making. In the conventional sense, The Corrections didn't have a plot, but it did explain how the characters got where they were. Take Gary for example, who was sure in his heart he didn't want to have a marriage like his father who dominated (or bullied) his wife. As a result, his wife started dominating the marriage, to the point of absurdity. The author doesn't feel the need to point it out, it's clear to everyone reading the novel.

What Went On In His Mind?
Jonathan Franzen has written some nonfiction as well, and most of it gets referenced in whatever piece is being written about him. For him, writing the third book was extremely difficult, because when he was researching for it, the world was moving differently. Complicated things were being simplified and this callous approach incensed him no end. But the novels based on similar topics were too dull, in his opinion, so he didn't write for a long time.

Nonfiction Is Easier
Jonathan Franzen says nonfiction is slightly easier though getting the outline of the book in place is slightly difficult. Once the outline is done, he just has to write it. There were challenges in getting the outline right, but he had a lot to say and believed people were ready to listen to him. The Corrections appeared on the literary scene at just the right time, since it happened at the time when family bonding was increasing due to outer world success was tapering off. People are more interested in their families and are bonding well with the family members better than ever.

The Author Takes Himself Seriously
Jonathan Franzen is one writer who takes himself very seriously and is unapologetic about it. He says the writers are looking at the character (and the family) yet again, and it's a good change. He even believes the chapter itself is a short story in itself, and that when the chapter ends, a portion of the story ends. In the current age, idealism is dying fast and practical world is taking precedence over everything. So the attention being paid to the family is increasing and in a good way. Jonathan Franzen says family is the only way to make a novel meaningful and significant.

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The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood : Greatest Books of All Time

The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

By Philip Spires

Sometimes, when reading a big book, one gets the feeling that the author set out to achieve size, as if that in itself might suggest certain adjectives from a reader or reviewer - weighty, significant, deep, serious, complex, extensive, perhaps. Sometimes - rarely, in fact - one reads a big book and becomes lost in its size, lost in the sense that one ceases to notice the hundreds passing by, as the work creates its own time, defines its own experience, shares its own world. Even then, reaching the end can often be merely trite, just a running out of steam, the process thoroughly engaging, the product, however, something of a let down. Rarely, very rarely indeed, one reads a big book that actually needs its size, justifies itself, continues to surprise as well as enchant and then, finally, stuns. Margaret Atwood's Blind Assassin is such a book, a giant in every sense, a masterpiece beyond question.

Blind Assassin was awarded the Booker prize in 2000 and charts intersecting histories of two well-to-do Canadian families, Chase and Griffen. The two Chase sisters, Iris and Laura, are quite different people. Born into the relative opulence of a Canadian manufacturing family, they have a private education of sorts, experienced throughout and yet alongside something vaguely like a childhood. Various aspects of twentieth century history impinge upon their lives and eventually force their family to reassess its status. Economic downturn, war and family tragedy take their toll on the father, who becomes less able to manage either his own life or his business. Something has to give. Ways of coping must be found.

Iris, the elder sister, is the first person narrator of about half of the book, the other half being devoted to a book within a book, a novel in the name of Laura, the younger sister. This novel, entitled The Blind Assassin, is an eclectic mix of experience, sex, fantasy and politics. It has made a name for Laura and retains a significant cult following many years after its publication. Laura, herself, died in a car accident. She drove off a bridge into a ravine. The car belonged to Iris. There was never any real explanation for the event.

Iris, meanwhile, has been married off to an older man, a Griffen, who seems to treat her like so much chattel. But then he is an industrialist with the wherewithal, not to mention capital, to assist the bride's family business in its time of need. Iris, therefore, experiences the Canadian equivalent of an arranged marriage. Perhaps the word marriage is a little overstated. The partnership could be better described as a merger, or a union, if that were not a dirty word because of its political connotation.

And so the octogenarian Iris, clearly anticipating the end of her days, embarks upon a cathartic outpouring of personal and family history in the hope that an estranged granddaughter might just understand a little about other peoples' motives.

The book takes us through Canada and north America, across to Europe, via an imagined universe, to political commitment, direct action and its inevitable reaction. Iris needs to write it all down. And so she works her story out, constructing it, perhaps reconstructing it, maybe inventing it from memory and relived experience against a backdrop of contemporary Canada and her own failing health. Her vulnerability, in the end, is our debt, our penance, perhaps. She is a wise old woman with much to hide, but her acerbic wit is undiminished by age, her observations of others stunningly perspicacious.

It is not often that a novel, a mere flight of another's fancy, achieves the subtle, stunning and surely enduring power of the Blind Assassin.

Philip Spires
Author of Mission, an African novel set in Kenya
http://www.philipspires.co.uk/

Michael, a missionary priest, has just killed Munyasya, a retired army officer, outside the cathedral in Kitui, Kenya. It was an accident, but Mulonzya, a politician, exploits the tragedy for his own ends.

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Appointment in Samarra By John O'Hara : Greatest Books of All Time

Appointment in Samarra by John O'Hara

Book Review—Appointment in Samarra

By James Ament

Appointment in Samarra – by John O’Hara, 1934

It’s been perhaps 40 years since I’ve even thought about John O’Hara’s books let alone read him. I had never read this one, but in an act of pure spontaneity, I picked up a ratty old copy at the city library while browsing through the stacks. Oh, what joys we can find purely by accident!

This one apparently became an instant best seller in 1934 but not necessarily a critical success. Hemingway praised it but other notables thought it so-so and it did not win any prizes. Mr. O’Hara thought it tied for second best of his novels but he gave no other details........

Thanks : James Russell Ament

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Animal Farm by George Orwell : Greatest Books of All Time

Animal Farm - George Orwell - Review Summary Notes

By S Dey

Animal Farm is one of the two greatest works of George Orwell, the other being 1984. Animal Farm makes satirical allegories of the totalitarian communism of Soviet Russia. The novel is regarded as one of the all-time bests ever written by any author.Animal Farm is a novel of betrayed revolution. It presents the corruption that followed the revolution led by Lenin.

In Animal Farm, the characters are animals and human beings. Among the animals, many of them are pigs, who are more often than not rulers. Apart from pigs, we see three main horses, a donkey, a goat, some puppies, rats, the sheep (plural number), a raven, a cat and hens.

The animals are more allegorical than real. The interpretation of the meanings is often left to the reader, but generally the consensus is that they represent different classes. Again, the humans represent another class. Thus, the novel demonstrates multiple classes.

All animals are equal, but some are more equal than the others.
All animals are supposed to be of the same class, but in reality, some animals are of superior class.
Pigs: Old Major represents Lenin/Marx. He had introduced the animals to the song Beasts of England. Napoleon (allusion of Stalin), the villain, a Berkshire boar, gets more powerful gradually, with help of the puppies whom he uses as secret police. He drives out Snowball (allusion of Trotsky), from the farm and uses dogs to enforce his dictatorship. He changes the commandments to allow him have privileges such as eat on a table. He and the other pigs learn to walk upright and behave like those humans against whom they had revolted. Snowball, allusion of Trotsky, was working for the good of the farm and had won over most of the animals hearts, but was driven out by Napoleon and his dogs. Napoleon also had spread negative rumors on Snowball. Squealer (allusion of Molotov) is Napoleon's minister of propaganda, and his main assistant for all practical purposes. He uses statistics to confuse the animals and show that they had improved quality of life, and the animals, with little memory of life before revolution, accept. Minimum is a poetic pig representing all the admirers of Stalin inside and outside Russia.

Humans: Mr. Jones, a heavy drinker, the disposed tsar. His attempt to recapture the farm is spoiled by the Battle of the Cowshed (Russian Civil War). Interestingly, Napoleon eventually becomes as much a drunkard as Jones. Mr. Frederick, the tough owner of Pinchfield, a neighboring farm, represents Hitler and his farm represents Nazi Party. Mr. Pilkington is apparently nice but is shrewd. He and Napoleon draw the Ace of Spades (the highest card in a card game) and begin a bad fight, symbolizing the tensions between US and Russia. Mr. Whymper (loosely alluring Western intellectuals) is hired by Napoleon to represent Animal Farm in the human society.

Horses: Boxer is the hardest-working entity in the animal farm. He is dedicated to the success of the farm. Boxer invests all his loyal, kind, dedicated self to the farm's "good" as portrayed to him by the farms leaders. His hoofs eventually splits and he is sent to death by Napoleon when he could not work any more (and Napoleon spread the rumor that he died peacefully in a hospital). "I will work harder" was the motto of Boxer in any tough situation, and his brain-washed trust was shown by his maxim "Napoleon is always right". Clover is Boxer's companion. She works with Boxer and loves him and cares for him, and takes the blame on herself when Boxer splits his hoof. She is deeply respected by the three younger ones who eventually take Boxer's role. Mollie is a third horse - a self-centered mare - who wears ribbons in her mane and eats sugar cubes (lives a life of luxury), and is pampered by humans. Later she leaves for another farm seeking better comfort.

Other animals: Benjamin, the wise donkey who could read also, represents the Jews and lives till the end of the novel. Muriel is a wise old friendly goat like Benjamin, but dies earlier in the novel from old age. The cat represents laziness, the rats represent some arbitrary people who roam around, the sheep represent the masses (and Napoleon manage the sheep such that he is supported and believed by them) and the hens represent the rich peasants. Moses is an old raven (bird) that sometimes visits the farm from Sugarcandy Mountain, a place where the hard-working animals go after death he claims. The puppies are the ones that Napoleon specially raises and makes a secret police out of them. They become one of the backbones of Napoleon's power in the Animal Farm.

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The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh : Greatest Books of All Time

The Language of Flowers by
Vanessa Diffenbaugh

By Holly Weiss

The Language of Flowers, Vanessa Diffenbaugh's debut novel, may be the most talked about publishing acquisition of 2011. Ballantine won it in a fiercely fought auction. It has already garnered countless pre-publication raves.

Eighteen and released from the foster care system, Victoria's adult life begins with the admonition, "Your life starts here. No one to blame but yourself from here on out." The chapters alternate between Victoria's life at this point and eight years earlier when love-starved Elizabeth adopts her. Their bond, which revolves around Elizabeth mentoring Victoria on the meaning of flowers, is touching. Although a sympathetic character, Victoria is persistently angry, suspicious and unable to relate to others. Victoria's discovery of a means of communication and self-worth through her garden is masterfully interwoven through the book.

Flowers convey many emotions and messages. Diffenbach's unique book projects honesty. Victoria's loyalty to the meaning of flowers is the one thing she holds true in her life. Her desire to gift their meaning into other people's lives is touching and honorable. It is refreshing to read a book that nourishes the soul and inspires trust in human resilience. The author communicates as creatively with words as her protagonist does with flowers. The Language of Flowers may be a serious contender for a New York Times best-seller list.
The author's guide describes diligent research into the meanings of flowers from Victorian times to the present. Diffenbaugh's experience as a foster mother lends credibility to her story. A great asset to the book is her appendix titled "Victoria's Dictionary of Flowers" and an author interview.

I thank LibraryThing's Early Reviewers Program for the advance review copy.

Holly Weiss is the author of a historical fiction novel, Crestmont, writer and reviewer of newly-released books.
http://www.hollyweiss.com/.
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Greatest Books of All Time : A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway

A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
- A Book Review

By Michael Cooper

A Farewell To Arms

The novel "A Farewell to Arms" should be classified as a historical romance. Many people in reading this book could interpret this to be a war novel, when in fact it was one of the great romance novels written in its time. When reading this book you notice how every important event of the war is overshadowed by the strong love story behind it.

The love story is circled around two people, Frederic Henry and Catherine Barkley. Frederic is a young American ambulance driver with the Italian army in World War I. He meets Catherine, a beautiful English nurse, near the front of Italy and Austria. At first Frederic's relationship with Catherine consists of a game based on his attempts to seduce her. He does make one attempt to kiss her, and is quickly slapped by an offended Catherine. Later in the story, Frederic is wounded and sent to the American hospital where Catherine works. Here he finds a part of him he has never had before, the ability to love. This is where his feelings for Catherine become extremely evident. Their relationship progresses and they begin a passionate love affair.

After his stay in the hospital, Frederic returns to the war front. During this period, Hemmingway heavily indicates the love Frederic has for Catherine. It is evident that Frederic is distracted by his love for Catherine.
During a massive retreat from the Austrians and the Germans, the Italian forces become disordered and chaotic. Frederic is forced to shoot an engineer sergeant under his command, and in the confusion is arrested by the Italian military police for the crime of not being Italian. Disgusted with the Army and facing death, Frederic decides he has had enough of the war; he dives in to the river to escape.

After swimming to safety, Frederic boards a train and reunites with Catherine. She is pregnant with their baby. With the help of an Italian bartender, Catherine and Frederic escape to Switzerland, and plan to marry after the baby is born. When Catherine goes into labor, the doctor suddenly discovers that her pelvis is too narrow to deliver the baby. He attempts an unsuccessful Cesarean section, and she dies in childbirth with the baby. To Frederic, her dead body is like a statue; he walks back to his hotel without finding a way to say goodbye, seemingly lost forever.

I found it to be evident that there was a lot of foreshadowing and symbolism in this story, especially concerning the rain. The rain always seemed to be around when something bad was happening and when Catherine and Frederic were apart. When they were together the rain suddenly disappeared. It seemed that Hemingway was using the rain as a vehicle to show Frederic's generally hidden emotions.

I liked this book very much but there were a lot of things I was uncertain of at the end of this story. Did Catherine really love Frederic? Did he really love her? Were they both just looking for closure at a hard time in their lives? I do truly believe that they did love each other but Hemingway makes some things unclear.
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Greatest Books of All Time : To Kill a Mockingbird , By Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird - A Book Review

By Michael Cooper

The novel To Kill A Mockingbird revolves around a young girl named Jean Louise Finch who goes by the nicknamed "Scout". Scout experiences different events in her life that dramatically change her life. Scout and her brother Jem are being raised by their father, a lawyer named Atticus and a housekeeper named Calpumia in a small town in the south. At this point in time in the South racism and discriminations towards black was a big issue . The story begins when Scout is 6 years old, and her brother is about to enter the 5th grade. That summer Scout and her brother meet a young boy named Dill who comes from Mississippi to spend the summers there. They become fascinated with a man named "Boo" Radley, a man in his thirties who has not been seen outside of his home in years, mainly because of his suppressed upbringing. They have an impression of Mr. Radley as being this large ugly and evil man. Then comes the trial. Scout's father becomes a defense attorney for a black man, Tom Robinson, who is falsely accused of raping a white women. This has a big affect on Scout. During this trial she gets teased by friends because her father was helping this black man. Scout starts to see the racism that exist. During the trial Scout and her brother and close friend Dill witness the trial. Even though they are young they can see that Mr. Robinson is innocent. Even though Mr. Robinson's innocence was clear even in the eyes of kids, Mr. Robinson was still found guilty. Later in an attempt to escape, Mr. Robinson is shot dead. Scout is extremely disappointed at the verdict and even more at the death of Mr. Robinson and realizes the injustice that exist. Later in a cowardly attempt by the alleged rape victims father, tries to kill Scout and her brother in order to get even with her father for making him look back in court. This is when Mr.Radley makes an appearance again an stabs their attacker. Even though Mr. Radley kills a man he is not tried for murder because he was defending the Scout and her brother. Finally some justice. This gives Scout some hope that is a chance for improvement in this unjust world.

(Discussion of main themes in To Kill A Mockingbird)

There are many different themes present in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The first theme which I will discuss is "Prejudice". The whole story revolved around the prejudice views of this Southern community. The whole reason why the trial was going on was because of people views towards blacks in the south. Since the alleged rape victim's father has such a prejudice view towards black, he is embarrassed that his daughter was actually flirting with a black man. To combat this he falsely accuses the innocent Mr. Robinson of rape. If it wasn't for the prejudice view which existed in the south the accusation would had never been brought against Mr. Robinson. These prejudice views in the south created a double standard of justice. With all the negative points that can be found in the story in respect to prejudice, there was a bright spot when it came to the prejudice issue. This "ray of light" came in the form of Scout's father Atticus. Atticus represented hope. Hope that good people still exist. Even in a society filled with hate. Atticus represented the hope that one day things can change

The "Prejudice" theme also ties in well with the title of the book "To Kill A Mocking Bird." In Chapter 10, Scout and Jem Finch get air rifles for Christmas. Scouts father tells her and her brother that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird because mockingbirds are harmless creatures who do nothing but sing for our enjoyment. In the story To Kill a Mockingbird Mr. Robinson is clearly the "Mocking Bird". He is a good man who has never harmed anyone and is figuratively and literally shot by society because of prejudice. The jurors sentence him to death not because he did anything wrong but because of prejudice. He is then later shot for trying to escape this unjust ruling. Mr. Robinson just like a mockingbird is shot for no reason at all.

The second theme which I will discuss is "coming of age". The "Coming of age" theme basically entails a character who evolves to a new level of self awareness through his or her experiences in life. This is clearly the case with Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. An example of Scout's "coming of age" can be seen when she meets her friend Dill. Dill comes from a broken home and lives somewhere beyond Alabama. Scout who comes from a good home is awaken to the different quality of life that exist and is able to come to a conclusion that life exist beyond the world she knows. Through these experiences she grows more tolerant of others, learning how to "climb into another person's skin and walk around in it." On her first day of school she finds that just like with Dill there are both social and poor classes in society, some are respectable and others not. She also learns that her father is an extra-ordinary man, fighting for a Negro's rights in court. During the trial of Tom Robinson Scout learns about equality and inequality and finally about racial prejudice. By the final chapters of the novel, Scout goes to another "coming of age experience." She learns that good people can still suffer injustice. She realizes this when she see's Tom Robinson suffer injustice even though they did nothing to deserve it. She discover that the courts does not always result in justice. In the end after all of Scout's experiences and discoveries we get the sense that she will not follow the prejudice views which her society upholds. In the end Scout had matured and grown more as a kid, than many adults will do in there lifetime.

The third and final theme which I will discuss is "Justice". In the story To Kill a Mockingbird I feel,the author, Ms. Lee portrays true justice as being best seen through the eyes of the innocent. In the story Scout and her brother, being the innocent,can clearly see the injustice being done to Mr. Robinson. In contrary to Scout and her brother other people in society more specifically the older people in the town, the people who have lived through different experiences, become blinded when it comes to true justice. Or maybe they are not blinded but just choose to ignore it. This is clearly seen when they sentence an innocent man to death. This ignorance of justice can be blamed on the prejudice views which are present and eventually instilled in society in the south. So I feel that Harper Lee is connecting justice with innocence to a certain extent. In my opinion Harper Lee portrays justice as being easily detected. The reason I say this is even the young justice. The problem is society can instill beliefs that can act as a veil and blind the people from justice. The only way to uncover this veil is through people like Atticus who can pass his morality and nobility to the young and the "blinded"

(Would I recommend this book?)
I would definitely recommend people to read the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I found it to be an interesting and powerful book. I feel the book does a great job in portraying the extreme prejudice that existed in the south at that time. I feel this book makes a powerful statement on how justice can be altered through racism. I also think that the themes found in the book are themes which can still be found in our current society and that makes it the more interesting. You can even make a case that prejudice still has an effect in our legal system today. So if you are looking for a powerful book of "coming of age" and the battle for justice I would highly recommend To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

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Greatest Books of All Time : Lord of the Flies

Lord of the Flies, By William Golding

By Elise Guest

Everyone knows the premise of Lord of the Flies. It's one of those stories that have become an indelible part of our zeitgeist, like 1984 or Macbeth. I don't know when I was first exposed to the concept, but the most striking adaptation of the story for me was an obscure episode of The Simpsons, in which the children of Springfield find themselves stranded on a small island after a bus crash. Having now read the actual book, Lord of the Flies, I find myself compelled to go back and watch that episode of The Simpsons so I can appreciate its brilliance all the more.

But, a reminiscence of childhood TV is not what this review is about. William Golding's famous work, Lord of the Flies, follows the attempts of survival by a disparate group of British school-boys, stranded on a tropical island. It's unclear what, exactly, brought the boys to the island, but we do know that, faced with war, the bunch of them were loaded onto a plane and flown over the Pacific, where they were shot down. As the book was published in 1954, it's unclear if the war that acted as an impetuous was supposed to be the Second World War (maybe the book was written during the conflict and published at a later date?), or it is meant to be a new war. The British presence in the Pacific seems to imply a new war. If that is, in fact the case, than Golding as created a dystopia within a dystopian future - which gets bonus points from me!
Stranded the island, the group of boys is forced to develop a set of rules and laws by which to live. Initially divided between 'littleuns' and older boys, further cracks develop in the group when the older boys experience an ideological division between those who put hunting as a priority (led by Jack) and those who place a premium on rescue (led by Ralph). In a world where parents are non-existent, boys are allowed to be boys, and rules chafe, the majority of the group quickly turns to the easier way of life and supports the tribe which allows the inner beast to dominate. We then see even the most basic of social tenants break down and atrocities occur.

This work was Golding's first published novel and it shows (by the way, how depressing is it that if your follow-up works can never touch the fame of your first?). There are occasions where re-reading is required in order to understand what the physical aspects of a situation are, which is a cumbersome task for an adventure story. However, putting this aside, it is still a good read. Golding's characters are well crafted and balanced - though simplistic in some ways, it almost seems apropos, as they are in fact children trying to navigate a horrendous situation. I enjoyed the fact that Golding does not impose moral clarity on Ralph until the very last page; it strengthens his plot (while in a book like The Hunger Games, it weakens it).
I can see why this book would be forced reading for high school English classes. There is no doubt that there are multiple layers of interpretation to be found in everything, from the presence of a natural swimming pool, to the importance of the conch shell, to the final emotional conflict in the closing moments of the story. I would imagine that what you see in each turn of the page depends on where you are in your life, and how deeply you'd like to explore it. I'll fully admit that, while I noticed these aspects, I chose to shy away from them: as I don't have to hand in a 10 page paper on literary symbolism at the end of the week, I was able to read and appreciate this work as I never did with 1984 and Macbeth. Rather, I sought pleasure in the plot and characters.

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Greatest Books of All Time : The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye, by JD Salinger

By Elise Guest

My latest read is one that appears on almost everyone's 'to-read' list. And I'm stumped as to why. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is an American classic that I've heard about for years, but only recently read. To me, it fits into a particular genre of books - one that is easily identifiable as being written in the first half of the preceding century by Americans, just like The Great Gatsby, or The Graduate. I think the real problem lays in the fact that there is no real plot to these books, merely a collection of observations about human emotions, strung together by characters who aren't the least bit likeable, but who have attained entrance into the zeitgeist due to generations of readers. These books strike me as trying far too hard to be meaningful, and perhaps Salinger's work is the leader of the pack.

The story focuses on Holden Caulfield, an entitled rich boy from New York. Holden's biggest problem with the world is that it is full of 'phonies' - people who are too polite, people who are less intelligent than he is, people who don't meet his expectations. Holden begins telling his story at the point where he has been kicked out of yet another boarding school. Afraid to tell his parents, but unwilling to stay at the institution for another 3 days, Holden bolts for New York and sets up in a sleazy hotel. While in New York, Holden meets up with an old girl friend, an old teacher, and his kid sister.

Throughout Holden's time in the city, we learn more about his personal history. Holden's father is a corporate lawyer; he has an older brother who is in Hollywood writing screen plays, and a younger brother who died of leukemia; he's been expelled or dropped out of various boarding schools; and he's a virgin, for which he blames himself for being too much of a gentleman to force girls. Most importantly though, we learn that Holden is a coward. He calls himself such multiple times, but he's a far bigger coward than he's willing to admit to himself.

And there's the rub of the story - Holden won't admit anything to himself, beyond surface niceties. Fine, he will say that the fact that he's bounced from school to school is his fault, but he doesn't mean it. We repetitively see him parroting back the opinion and advice that responsible adults give him during his narration, and it strikes me that his willingness to accept blame is something that came from being lectured countless times about his unwillingness to buckle down. Finally, while discussing his situation with an old teacher that he respected, I felt that Holden was going to finally learn why he was a habitual failure - this teacher tells him that life is a game and, whether you like it or not, it's a game that has to be played or else you risk a crash and burn that you can't bounce back from. Holden finally seemed to listen and (maybe) get it. Then the teacher made a pass at him, and he ran, forgetting everything he seemed so willing to absorb.
The only other moments of emotional or intellectual honesty are those that Holden seems experiences while with his sister, Phoebe. She asks him at one point what he's going to do with his life, to which he describes his ideal job as a fantasy of his, based on a poem by Robby Burns. The poem runs, "If a body meet a body coming through the rye," but Holden thought the 'meet' was 'catch,' and so his fantasy is to keep the children he envisions running through a field of rye from running of a near-by cliff by catching them before they fell. Ah, the delusions of one who has never had to apply himself. In the end, Holden is placed in a mental health institution (I think - Salinger never overtly states it), and the story ends.

The Catcher in the Rye seems like a work that would pop with people in their late teens/early 20s, before they wake up to the reality of the world in which rent it due on the first of the month, you have to buy your own toilet paper, and you hate your job but feel you can't quit. I can see Holden's tale of woe appealing to those who find themselves is a similar boat as the main characters, in which there are no real responsibilities in their lives, and the veneer of cynicism that applies itself after half a decade of self-reliance has yet to solidify. For me, however, Holden's tale is one of self-deluded grandeur, in which he has yet to be forced to grow up. His concerns are ones that normal, hard-working, self-aware people never have to struggle with, and are the stronger for. There was nothing in Holden's life that was particularly difficult to deal with, and his teen-angst was an invention of his own creation. In the end, Holden was the biggest phony in his own tale.
Salinger's work didn't resonate with me. Because I couldn't sympathize (or even empathize) with Holden, it felt like 214 pages of teenage emotions that have no place in the real world. I wonder though, had I read this work 10 (even 5) years ago, would my outlook be different? I don't know, but what I do know is that The Catcher in the Rye has no place on my personal 'to-read' list.

I spend a lot of time reading. So much so, I have eight bookcases in my home. I want a place to put up book reviews and info on my favorite authors, so created a blog called Eigh Bookcases, which can be found at http://8bookcases.blogspot.com/

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