Catcher in the Rye JD Salinger died aged 91
JD Salinger died aged 91
“JD Salinger, who has died aged 91, was the reclusive author of The Catcher in the Rye (1951), one of the most beloved novels in the English language since the second world war. Millions of American high school and college students identified passionately with the novel's 16-year-old hero, Holden Caulfield, whose blend of innocence and disillusion make him appear a version of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, translated from the American heartland to New York City, and from the simplicity of the 1840s to the anxieties of the modern era. Yet, although Holden is an American, his appeal transcended national borders. The Catcher in the Rye has been translated into 30 languages, and sold more than 65m copies worldwide. In his biography of Salinger, the British poet and critic Ian Hamilton wrote of his shock of recognition when, at the age of 17, he read Holden's story. Other non-American male critics have expressed a similar sense of wonder about how Salinger could have so perfectly captured their sense of their own adolescent selves.”
„J. D. Salinger, who was thought at one time to be the most important American writer to emerge since World War II but who then turned his back on success and adulation, becoming the Garbo of letters, famous for not wanting to be famous, died on Wednesday at his home in Cornish, N.H., where he had lived in seclusion for more than 50 years. He was 91.”
J. D. Salinger, Literary Recluse, Dies at 91, Charles McGrath in The New York Times
"JD Salinger, who shocked one generation and inspired another with a classic novel of teenage rebellion”
"JD Salinger's death sparks speculation over unpublished manuscripts"
“Take the austere little paperbacks down from the shelf and you can hold the collected works of J.D. Salinger — one novel, three volumes of stories — in the palm of one hand.”
Hermit Crab of American Letters, Richard Lacayo in Time
"One of the most admired and influential US writers following the success of his 1951 novel and its laconic anti-hero Holden Caulfield, Salinger published nothing after 1965 and had not been interviewed since 1980."
Reclusive writer J.D. Salinger dead at 91, The Independent on January 28th, 2010
"Reports of my death are MINE and MINE ALONE, and any unauthorized reporting of this alleged event will be considered an invasion of my privacy and a violation of my copyright, and will be subject to vigorous prosecution."