catcher in the rye

Way before I read this book, I went through a good amount of reviews mostly to see what I was getting into. And it had every element that I'd never like in a lifetime but here I am I guess.

Starting off, I think this book would be an ideal place to start with if you enjoy John Green's book. Not much when in comparison to plot but more because of what I'd term as the "American depression". Essentially that being, if you're not american; you probably wont relate to it. And as harsh as it sounds, I struggled reading this book for most of the part. Insufferable main characters is not a new concept to me (might even enjoy it if done well) but Holden takes this aspect to a whole new level. Maybe thats the point of the book, maybe its vehemently try to discourage that sort of behaviour. And yet its seems less of a cautionary tale and more of a "he's 16, its just mood swings" sort of attitude.

Time after time it is shown that Holden is an unreliable narrator, majorly because of his ever shifting moods and his inabilty to have any control over his grief and more importantly- his refusal to accept his condition. Often this sort of behaviour is taken in a lighter sense because "thats what grief does to you". I  do strongly believe that you can study why someone might conduct themseleves the way they are because of a certain affliction. This however does not allow them to behave in an inadequate or substandard manner. And again maybe the book itself might not preach it, yet it does nothing to convey that it might be inhenrently harmful.

Holden is a hypocrite through and through and maybe readers relate to that sort of thing because essentially he was made to be relatable, yet everything about this reality seems feigned and saturated. Almost as if the author was struggling with the idea of trying to make a problematic character. Holdens character had a great scope of outcome, yet it feel tedious time to time. Maybe its because of his general resentment towards everything, "phoniness" as he would say. He gets agaitated by pretty much everything and yet complies with it, without having a self introspection. It just comes off as snobby if anything. 

And that itself might be the bigger underlying issue. For every shitty decision Holden takes, its swept off as "sad kid makes sad judgements". Salinger was over thirty years old when he wrote the book, and as with any old man trying to write a "teenage experience", it certainly didnt hold up to those expectations.