Holden Caulfield and another shot of coffee

So. I'm taking a class in Young Adult Materials for Libraries, and one of the first readings (There's an average of about 400 pages reading every two weeks. . . one week it increases to almost 700 pages) is Catcher in the Rye. I've never read it, never planned to (except for Banned Books Week, maybe), and never entirely wanted to. However, I find myself liking it more and more. The character is very 3-Dimensional, and the themes are pretty clear. I also know someone who was exactly like the main character. . . it's strange to read a book from the perspective of someone who is so like one of my dear friends (although my friend is a bit more. . . restrained(?) than Caulfield). I'd like to hear a guy's take on this book. Salinger doesn't really put anyone in a flattering light, least of all teenage boys and the education system. I'm halfway through the book (devoured most of it this morning over my daily 1.5 hours of solitude at the local cafe before work), and I'm having a difficult time pulling my head out of it.

Also, the slang is fun. The language really grates on my nerves, though. But the slang I find quite hilarious and telling of the time. The book reads like someone recounting a story over lunch. In fact, reading the book is just like reliving my high school lunch hour again, although more happens. Reading the book, I feel like I'm being pulled into the late 1940s and receiving a snapshot of what New York was like at the time.

It's so nice to be reading for school again. Something other than a book on digital library collections and dry books on reference. As much as I love putting those things into practice, reading about them is boring to me.

Boss still hasn't come in yet. I'm listening to Death Cab and whatever my iPod has on its Genius List for me today. How I love that feature. I so <3 Apple. And Sally, my iPod Nano.

Right. Well. To work.