1. J.D. Salinger 1919-2010 “I am a kind of paranoiac in reverse. I suspect people of plotting to make me happy.”

2. Seeds of Discontent 1919: Jerome David Salinger was born in New York City on January 1. 1932: The Salinger Family moved to Park Avenue. JD was enrolled in the McBurney School, a private high school where he was captain of the fencing team. 1942: Salinger entered the US Army 1944: Salinger participated in the D-Day invasion

3. Creating Holden 1946: Salinger returned to the United States. He finished and submitted original version of The Catcher in the Rye as a 90 page novella. Dissatisfied, he withdrew the book and began to rework it. 1951: The Catcher in the Rye was published. The novel quickly topped The New York Times Bestseller list

4. The Catcher Controversy Since its publication, The Catcher in the Rye has been a favorite target of censors. As early as 1963, a delegation of parents of high school students in Columbus, Ohio asked the school board to ban the novel for being “anti-white” and “obscene.” As recently as 2001, the book was removed by a school district in South Caroling because it "is a filthy, filthy book."

5. “The Last Private Person in America” During the 1950s and 1960s Salinger was one of the most widely discussed and influential authors in the US. But as his celebrity grew, he withdrew from the limelight. Growing increasingly hostile to the New York publishing world, in 1953 Salinger moved to the small New Hampshire village of Cornish where he lived until his death in 2010. Salinger did not publish any other books since 1963, but many wonder if he spent the last 45 years of his life writing.

6. What the novel’s about… Set a few years after WWII, the novel begins with Holden Caulfield failing out of yet another prep school. He decides to leave school a few days early before his parents know he’s been kicked out again, so he heads to his hometown of NYC and spends a few days hanging out, traveling around, and meeting new people…

10. But it’s not quote that simple Ostensibly just about Holden (who whines and complains a lot) in NYC, but this isn’t just another journey story. It quickly becomes clear that Holden is awash with emotions: anger, sadness, and moments of joy. As he tells his story it’s revealed that a lot of his pain and confusion stem from the recent death of his younger brother, Allie.

12. Important places in NYC & the novel…

16. Holden on the Brink He’s struggling with a lot…on the edge between being a child and being an adult, Holden is having a hard time understanding why it’s worth growing up. Like all of us he questions the point of life and why people act the way they do… Look at his mood swings, musings, fixations, and try to figure out what is wrong and what is right with Holden Caulfield.