Holden At Sixteen Summary

Summary In the magazine article, “Holden at Sixteen” (2004), author Bruce Brooks claims that main character Holden will forever be sixteen no matter the time, making it “...the book most widely read by teenagers, generation after generation, and perhaps most widely enjoyed” (Brooks par. 22). Brooks supports this by comparing the characters of The Catcher in the Rye to other well-known books’ teenage characters and showing how them acting their true ages is what draws the attention of so many readers. Brooks has written this response on Holden’s age in order to identify how Salinger had written Catcher in such a way that the book will always be timeless because of the real emotions and issues that are present in the story. Brooks creates an aloof tone, making it seem the intended audience is everyone who has read the novel and relates to it in some way.
Response
In the article, Bruce Brooks asserts the novel is an important piece for young adults to read at least once in their life, for it relates to all young adults in some way. The title, “Holden at Sixteen,” brilliantly describes his response to a 2001 article on the novel and his opinion of the story. It was mind opening reading this and seeing that character Holden Caulfield has …show more content…
This article shows that no matter the time, as long as you are of the right age range, you will find joy in the novel. This was made clear when not only himself enjoyed the book in his teen years, but when his son found joy in the book when he was in his teens as well. This parallel between Brooks, his son and teens of this generation demonstrates how even though times may have changed, the feeling and many of the problems that young adults deal with will always fall along the same