Barcass Grinder wrote:Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
7/10
Fuck, what a bummer of a book. I read it not knowing anything about it, just that it was considered a classic. There were just too many similarities between Holden's thinking and mine for me to not be uncomfortable while reading it. I didn't realize I was that negative until I saw it in print and realized how stupid it sounds. The part where his sister accused Holden of hating everything, then challenged him to name one thing he TRULY enjoyed and he wasn't able to come up with an answer floored me. Fuck.
I think I just read this book at the wrong time in my life. Had I read it as a teenager I would have been all "Fuck yeah, people suck!". Reading it as a 32 year old I thought, "Fuck - do I really sound like that?!". I've been bummed all week while reading it. I'm glad I'm done with it now. Maybe I can start smiling again soon?
Yeah, this book is defnitely a classic, but it can be a bit much if you are not in the right mindset. I prefer Franny and Zooey. I mean there are still the trademark Salinger plot points that are extremely depressing, but ultimately there is something about it that is uplifting.
I've been reading the Song of Fire and Ice series for the past couple of months, and right now I'm on the third one (A Storm of Swords?). I was never really into a lot of fantasy stuff (or at least since I was much younger), so I can't compare it to other authors or series, but I like it. For a fantasy work, I would give it about an 8.5/10 I suppose. The plot is great, based on The War of the Roses, and the story is told third person through the eyes of several different characters, with each chapter being a different character. Not a big magical element to it, but it is there.
I usually am reading 3 to 6 books at a time though, so also currently:
Steppenwolf - Herman Hesse
Michael Chabon - Maps and Legends