First of all, The Catcher in the Rye is a "deep" book, and is set in the New York/Pennsylvania area during either 1948 or 1949. By "deep", I mean that the book deals more with the psychological, and requires pretty heavy thinking to understand. I myself don't believe that i fully understand some of the book, but for the most part, I do. The storyline of the book is, when taken by itself alone, actually kind of boring. But, when coupled with the mental side of the story, it can become quite enjoyable to read.
             I both liked and disliked this book, for various reasons. One reason I disliked it was because I found the plot, or storyline, to be uneventful. Basically, in The Catcher in the Rye, a sixteen-year old boy, Holden Caulfield experiences the beginnings of a nervous breakdown over the course of a three day "vacation" in New York City. Holden is fairly tall, has crewcut blonde hair, and is skinny. He drinks, smokes, and swears, although he cannot stand the words "fuck you," and constantly has to try and prove himself to his peers. He is a "terriffic" liar, also, and is somewhat of a coward. In general, he doesn't do too well in confrontations, especially when they get violent, and doesn't seem to like being around people much.
             The story itself is told by Holden, who is reflecting upon the Christmas slightly before he had his nervous breakdown and got sent to a mental home or some sort of facility like one. At the beginning of the story, Holden is preparing to leave his current school, a boarding school called Pencey Prep. which is located in Agerstown, Pennsylvania. Holden has a history of not trying, and as a result flunking out of, schools, and has just flunked out of this one. He goes to one of his teacher's houses to visit with his favorite teacher, Mr. Spencer and say goodbye to him. Mr. Spencer is an old man, maybe sixty-five or seventy years old, and teaches both English and History classes at Pencey. Mr. Spencer is Holde...