Entry 3

One book that everyone should absolutely be required to read is Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger. I know that this is kind of ironic because in our class we were required to read this and it is kind of a standard in literature anyway. But after reading it I would recommend it to anyone who is in high school, because it generates strong reactions from anyone who reads it. Most teenagers who are in high school will identify with some of the angst and feelings that Holden has. Even after you realize that he is hyper critical, hypocritical and a pretty tough guy to be friends with, he also embodies the insecurities of  the average American teenager. Or maybe not, there are probably some people who read the book and wonder why he's such an anti-social loser. For me it showed an extreme version of things that naturally occur to any teenager. For instance its natural to sometimes wonder how certain peoples personalities could possibly be real, and imagine that they might just be a front to protect that person for some kind of insecurity. This is a very Holden thing to observe and after reading this book that is all I can think about whenever a thought like that pops into my head. One of the reasons this book is so popular (and should be) is that it not only acknowledges the confusion and anxiety that lots of people have experienced, and points out an extreme version of it, essentially telling people that it's normal to feel that way sometimes and that it could be much worse, just look at how bad this guy has it.