CATCHER IN THE RYE by Salinger, J.D - 1951

Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1951. First edition. Near fine in very good plus jacket. First issue of this enduring portrait of adolescent angst, a beautiful copy in a professionally restored dust jacket. Divisive since it was published (when James Stern famously mocked CATCHER in his NEW YORK TIMES review by writing in the voice of Haulden Caufield), Salinger's novel of a teen's adventures and alienations in New York City remains equally beloved and denounced. One of the most widely banned books ever published, it has been both scapegoated as a template for deranged gunman (like Mark David Chapman) and praised as a "perfect book" (Adam Gopnik). These tensions continue to drive its popularity and importance, and CATCHER regularly appears on the lists of the best novels of the 20th century. A nice copy of this controversial classic. 7.75'' x 5''. Original full black cloth, gilt-lettered spine. Original unclipped ($3.00) red pictorial dust jacket designed by Michael Mitchell. [6], 277, [1] pages. Faint residue from bookplate removed from endpaper, expert restoration to jacket.