Jerome David Salinger 1919-2010
J.D. Salinger Dies at 91: The Hermit Crab of American Letters (TIME)
Catcher in the Rye author J.D. Salinger dies (CBC News)
‘Catcher in the Rye’ author JD Salinger dies (Washington Post)
JD Salinger, 91, Is Dead (NYTimes)
Catcher in the Rye novelist JD Salinger dies at 91 (BBC)
NEW YORK – J.D. Salinger, the legendary author, youth hero and fugitive from fame whose “The Catcher in the Rye” shocked and inspired a world he increasingly shunned, has died. He was 91.
Salinger died of natural causes at his home on Wednesday, the author’s son said in a statement from Salinger’s literary representative. He had lived for decades in self-imposed isolation in the small, remote house in Cornish, N.H.
“The Catcher in the Rye,” with its immortal teenage protagonist, the twisted, rebellious Holden Caulfield, came out in 1951, a time of anxious, Cold War conformity and the dawn of modern adolescence. The Book-of-the-Month Club, which made “Catcher” a featured selection, advised that for “anyone who has ever brought up a son” the novel will be “a source of wonder and delight — and concern.”
Enraged by all the “phonies” who make “me so depressed I go crazy,” Holden soon became American literature’s most famous anti-hero since Huckleberry Finn. The novel’s sales are astonishing — more than 60 million copies worldwide — and its impact incalculable. Decades after publication, the book remains a defining expression of that most American of dreams — to never grow up.
AuthorScoop
January 28th, 2010 at 2:23 pm
Without a doubt, he is a literary icon who has earned his place in history and I would like to say that this is a great loss for society, as many others will abuse the phrase upon this news, but when you really think about it, Salinger’s death is irrelevant at this point.
He pretty much gave up on contributing to the art or even interacting with society decades ago. We’ve got his books and always will. Salinger’s work was done.
In fact, his death might lead to the publication of the books and stories that he has been working on during his years of seclusion. So the irony might actually be that his death is a gain for society, from a literary perspective.
January 28th, 2010 at 2:30 pm
thanks for your comments, michael.
i wish i could rationalize my sadness at this news.
January 28th, 2010 at 2:39 pm
Last year’s nonsense with ‘JD California’ Colting really relaunched CATCHER IN THE RYE. As I said in private, I’m very glad Mr. Salinger lived to see that idiot fail.
Perhaps you are right and his death will goose us another dose of his work and his ethics.