J.D. Salinger is a name that almost instantly brings out strong reactions in people. Some boo and hiss, proclaiming his most famous work, “The Catcher in the Rye,” to be dangerous in some way and demand that it be banned from their children’s schools. Others smile and wax as poetic as they can muster, recalling their own first encounter with Holden Caulfield and how revelatory the story was in their youth. I belong to an unfortunate though fortunately very tiny segment of the population who has never read the book because I found out the term “catcher” in the title had nothing wto with baseball. No references to Mickey Cochrane, Gabby Hartnett, Ray Schalk, not even Campy or Yogi? Who needs it?
I’m an idiot, of course. It’s an American masterpiece. If you watch the new biographical film, REBEL IN THE RYE, you’ll hear it time and time again, just in case you don’t believe it already.
