I decided on The Catcher in the Rye as simply a classic novel, but I ended up finding much more dynamic writing and social criticism than I expected.  

The main character, Holden Claulfield, simply tells you how his week’s been in a revolutionary writing style that feels far more natural and less cinematic than most other books, such as him going on tangents about whatever past events he wishes to inform you of.  It’s very easy to fall deep into this book as the conversational feeling is mobilizing and creates a rolling ball effect where you want to hear what more Holden wants to tell you about and learn more about him and his life.  This creates an extremely conversational tone; the best I’ve been exposed to in reading.

The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger is a conversation between the reader and the main character, a wise guy in a world of simpletons. This creates a strong yet, in some instances overused, relationship between Holden and the world around him.  No matter, the past days of Holden’s life have been pretty interesting with the ruckus of him leaving his school being the first portion of his story.  It then continues onward in a very natural flow where although his life may be even at points alien, it doesn’t feel threatening because you’re hearing it from a peer.

At points, the topics that Holden discusses may seem offensive, but the reader is able to accept this foreign lifestyle because the main character acts as a link between the familiar and the unfamiliar.  There are points where Holden talks about things that may seem inappropriate, such as sex life and alcohol, but he makes it seem less distant to the reader by being a middleman between the world of teens and the world of adults.  

Holden is just a regular teenager.  He chats with his roommates, drinks soda, and is easily bored by his teachers, and this creates a link between the reader and the narrator.  This allows for the reader to connect with the topics in the book and recognize it better as simply someone else’s life, rather than dangerous or disturbing subject matter.

Holden is also connected to the world of adults.  He chats with adult women at the bar, drinks alcohol and smokes cigarettes when he can get his hands on them, and discusses sex in multiple instances.  Although these topics are not relatable, he makes them discussable in the first place by the connection between the reader and the narrator as peers.

Overall I recommend this book to any teens interested in a break from standard form of writing with a more conversational feeling and different values of the adolescent world and the adult world.  This book conveys both of these topics brilliantly in a way that is useful to younger people interested in the path of growing up.