Max Eastman
American writer (1883-1969)
J.D. Salinger was an American author best known for his iconic novel ‘The Catcher in the Rye.’ After its success, Salinger became increasingly reclusive, publishing less frequently and avoiding public attention. Despite his desire for privacy, his works and life continued to captivate readers and the public.
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About the J. D. Salinger
Jerome David Salingerwas an American author best known for his 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye. Salinger published several short stories in Story magazine in 1940, before serving in World War II. In 1948, his critically acclaimed story “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” appeared in The New Yorker, which published much of his later work.
The Catcher in the Ryewas an immediate popular success; Salinger’s depiction of adolescent alienation and loss of innocence was influential, especially among adolescent readers. The novel was widely read and controversial, and its success led to public attention and scrutiny. Salinger became reclusive, publishing less frequently. He followed Catcher with a short story collection, Nine Stories (1953); Franny and Zooey (1961), a volume containing a novella and a short story; and a volume containing two novellas, Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction (1963). Salinger’s last published work, the novella Hapworth 16, 1924, appeared in The New Yorker on June 19, 1965.
Afterward, Salinger struggled with unwanted attention, including a legal battle in the 1980s with biographer Ian Hamilton and the release in the late 1990s of memoirs written by two people close to him: Joyce Maynard, an ex-lover; and his daughter, Margaret Salinger.
Frequently Asked Questions
J.D. Salinger was an American author best known for his 1951 novel ‘The Catcher in the Rye.’ He published several short stories before and after the success of the novel, which explored themes of adolescent alienation and loss of innocence.
J.D. Salinger’s most famous work was his 1951 novel ‘The Catcher in the Rye,’ which became an immediate popular success and was widely read and controversial.
After the success of ‘The Catcher in the Rye,’ J.D. Salinger became increasingly reclusive, publishing less frequently and avoiding public attention, including a legal battle with a biographer and the release of memoirs by people close to him.
In addition to ‘The Catcher in the Rye,’ J.D. Salinger published a short story collection called ‘Nine Stories,’ as well as the volumes ‘Franny and Zooey’ and ‘Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction,’ which contained novellas and short stories.
J.D. Salinger was born on January 1, 1919, in New York City.
J.D. Salinger’s short story ‘A Perfect Day for Bananafish,’ which was published in The New Yorker in 1948, was critically acclaimed and helped establish his reputation as a notable writer.
J.D. Salinger passed away on January 27, 2010, at the age of 91.
24 Quotes by J. D. Salinger
- 1.
People never believe you.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 2.
An artist’s only concern is to shoot for some kind of perfection, and on his own terms, not anyone else’s.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 3.
It was a very stupid thing to do, I’ll admit, but I hardly didn’t even know I was doing it.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 4.
All morons hate it when you call them a moron.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 5.
Its really hard to be roommates with people if your suitcases are much better than theirs.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 6.
I am a kind of paranoid in reverse. I suspect people of plotting to make me happy.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 7.
How long should a man’s legs be? Long enough to touch the ground.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 8.
Mothers are all slightly insane.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 9.
I don’t even like old cars. I’d rather have a goddam horse. A horse is at least human, for God’s sake.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 10.
I’m sick of not having the courage to be an absolute nobody.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 11.
I’m sick of just liking people. I wish to God I could meet somebody I could respect.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 12.
I’m the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 13.
How do you know you’re going to do something, untill you do it?
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 14.
Goddam money. It always ends up making you blue as hell.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 15.
I don’t exactly know what I mean by that, but I mean it.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 16.
You take somebody that cries their goddam eyes out over phoney stuff in the movies, and nine times out of ten they’re mean bastards at heart.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 17.
I was about half in love with her by the time we sat down. That’s the thing about girls. Every time they do something pretty… you fall half in love with them, and then you never know where the hell you are.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 18.
I’m quite illiterate, but I read a lot.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 19.
They didn’t act like people and they didn’t act like actors. It’s hard to explain. They acted more like they knew they were celebrities and all. I mean they were good, but they were too good.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 20.
People never notice anything.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 21.
He had a theory, Walt did, that the religious life, and all the agony that goes with it, is just something God sics on people who have the gall to accuse Him of having created an ugly world.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 22.
The worst thing that being an artist could do to you would be that it would make you slightly unhappy constantly.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 23.
It’s funny. All you have to do is say something nobody understands and they’ll do practically anything you want them to.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)
- 24.
If a girl looks swell when she meets you, who gives a damn if she’s late? Nobody.
J. D. SalingerAmerican author (1919-2010)