English In Mourning

R.I.P. J.D. Salinger.

I have only had limited exposure to Salinger’s work but I have loved what I’ve read so far.  Hopefully I’ll be able to read more in the near future because I think he had a great voice and a knack for transcendental characters.  It would be impossible to ignore “Catcher In The Rye”, one of the best and also overrated books I’ve read.  Holden was someone I was annoyed by but also someone to admire at times.  I imagine that part of his personality was derived from Salinger himself.

R.I.P. Howard Zinn.

Zinn is another mysterious figure in my own reading history but he is still worth talking about.  I’ve briefly covered part of his work “A People’s History of The United States” which is increasingly interesting as I get older.  His last piece was about how President Obama is going to be recorded as a “mediocre” president and that people must realize this.  I find it impressive and encouraging that he didn’t buy into an image that many Americans did/continue to create.  Those who knew his work spoke fondly of him and I think him for his insight.