You were rude, arrogant, eccentric, reclusive -- and that's just what the people who liked you say. I admired you, not for that damn book, which annoyed the hell out of me, but instead for the way you ferociously battled to protect the work as well as the rights of the author. I bet you went out still swinging, too.To reflect on your legacy, well, let's put it this way: my middle teen has a copy of that damn book sitting on his desk at this very moment. He's writing a paper about it, and he and I have already had several semi-heated debates over it. I expect we'll have many more.
Whatever people say about you, your writing and the way you lived, J.D., you didn't just talk it, you walked it. Rest in peace.
In spite of his shortcomings, Salinger was brilliant.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could have had the discussions you are having with your child with my mother while I was in school. She's well-read, but I've never been able to talk with her about literature. Not deeply enough to row over it, anyhow. :)
Love this. I bet he would have loved it too.
ReplyDeleteToo true. RIP J.D.
ReplyDeleteI'd be curious to know what the content of said heated debates over the book were :).
Glad to know I'm not the only one who finds that certain book annoying.
ReplyDeleteI'd be curious too, Lynn. Because I hate that damn book. We spent a whole year on it in high school since it was the english teacher's all-time-favorite-none-better book.
ReplyDeleteUgh.
But you're right. Whatever people thought of him, JD stuck to his beliefs and never let go.
RIP
Wow, what a relief to read that others find that book of his annoying and not the greatest thing since sliced bread.
ReplyDeleteHated it, my niece thinking it's the Best. Thing. Ever.
Thanks for sharing, everyone.
Agreed. RIP JD.
ReplyDelete(Glad I'm not the only one not a fan of That Book.)
I'm taking a class at University Young Adult Literature and we read this book and discussed it this week. I had ready it in high school and found it a lot harder to read this time around. So sad that he died.
ReplyDeleteI started to read this book but thouht it was really boring and never finished it. I went to parochial school and so this book was on the taboo list and I didn't have to read it for school and in college my lit classes were more old literature so again, didn't have to read it. Don't know what the big deal was but I know my dad hated it!
ReplyDeleteFun to find others that weren't enthralled with THE book, either. I appreciate his genius. But also very much a failable human to; several years ago I read Joyce Maynard's memoirs of her time with him and I now recommend them highly.
ReplyDeleteI loved the book when I was younger--but this is a great post! Thanks.
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