Holden Caulfield narrates his breakdown from some kind of rest home in California, and his voice captured something about adolescent alienation so precisely that generations of teenagers have felt understood by this book, while generations of parents have worried about it. Salinger's ear for speech is perfect. The novel sold millions, then Salinger retreated from public life entirely, refusing interviews, refusing to publish. His silence became part of the legend. The book remains what it always was: a funny, heartbreaking portrait of someone too sensitive for the world.