J.D. Salinger's Nine Stories

[Julie Lomoe]

It's ironic that J.D. Salinger had to die to remind me it might be time to revisit his books again, but last night at Borders, I picked up a copy of his "Nine Stories," which the obits declared had a major influence on subsequent writers like Updike and Cheever. I'd read most of these as a teenager decades ago. 

 

I stayed up late reading five of the stories, and I've got to confess I have a hard time seeing what's so fantastic about them. Most of them are primarily dialogue, and not a great deal happens. And most of the characters are unappealing, with the exception of Esme in "For Esme with Love and Squalor."

 

Perhaps my opinion was colored by reading about Salinger's reclusive, misanthropic life. Nonetheless, I look forward to reading the rest of them. What do others think?

 

Julie Lomoe's Musings Mysterioso

 

P.S. Please visit my blog to read posts by my guests Rebecca Cantrell and Enid Wilson.

[Jude Hardin]

I read them a long time ago, and thought they were great. "Teddy" was my favorite.