Please, Mr. Salinger, don’t burn those manuscripts
From our Facebook group with the same name: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=205765890371
First off, a little background:
Many of us first learned about J.D. Salinger in ninth grade when we were forced to read his work Catcher in the Rye. We didn’t really understand why it was considered one of the greatest American novels but thought it was kind of cool that it had the word “fuck” in it. Flash forward a few years later, this cute guy/girl we were hoping to hook up with mentions how Salinger is one of their favorite writers. We give him another try and instantly fall in love now that our tastes have become more sophisticated. We can appreciate his storytelling abilities, and we soon devour Franny and Zooey, Nine Stories, and Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction. When unable to find any of his other works, we reread the aforementioned books.
Salinger the Man
Salinger has not published anything since 1965. Since then, he has been in seclusion in his home in New Hampshire. There is much speculation regarding his reasons for leaving the limelight. Some suggest that too many people treated him like he was Holden Caulfield, the jaded protagonist in Catcher in the Rye. And, Salinger himself confessed he hated the hassles surrounding publishing.
Unpublished Salinger
In 1972, Joyce Maynard, then living with Salinger, reported that he had completed two new novels. Before disappearing from the public eye, Salinger also freely admitted that, like most writers, he loves to write. Thus, it is to be assumed that in the intervening 44 years since his last publication, he must have many manuscripts gathering dust in an attic box.
It is not know what Mr. Salinger, now 90 years old, plans to do with these manuscripts. It is unlikely that he wants to deal with the constant media attention he would receive if he were to publish. So, in all likelihood, we will have to wait until he passes on to find out what will become of these manuscripts. The two clear options are he will have them destroyed or he will have them released for publication.
The Plea
We created this group on the off chance that we can get enough people to show support for the publication of these works that it will somehow get Mr. Salinger’s attention and move him (if he isn’t already so inclined) to have his works published at a time he deems appropriate.
We created this group for purely selfish reasons: Mr. Salinger’s writings move us, inspire us, and leave us craving more. We want more of his books and feel it would be a great tragedy if they were to go unpublished.
What You Can Do
-Join this group: there is power in numbers! Feel free to post your own pleas!
-Tell others about Salinger: word of mouth is powerful!
-Read his works and enjoy!
Thank you, and, Mr. Salinger, please don’t burn those manuscripts!
Some Links:
Salinger’s Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._D._Salinger
Salinger recently in the news: http://www.examiner.com/x-10884-St-Louis-Literature-Examiner~y2009m7d2-And-the-winner-is-JD-Salinger-so-far
Salinger discussion on NPR: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=106309617
Funny article on Salinger in The Onion: http://www.theonion.com/content/news/new_terminator_movie_brings_j_d
The Catcher in the Rye is still a best seller 58 years later: http://content.usatoday.com/life/books/booksdatabase/default.aspx?sortBy=&lastValue=60&date=latest