Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
160th out of 857 books
—
1,227 voters
Dream Catcher: A Memoir
In her much-anticipated memoir, Margaret A. Salinger writes about life with her famously reclusive father, J.D. Salinger -- offering a rare look into the man and the myth, what it is like to be his daughter, and the effect of such a charismatic figure on the girls and women closest to him. With generosity and insight, Ms. Salinger has written a book that is eloquent, spell...more
Paperback, 464 pages
Published
October 2nd 2001
by Washington Square Press
(first published 2000)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
841)
Much of the research Margaret Salinger has done about Salinger and their family is interesting. She is a fluid writer and captures the remoteness and character of the New Hanpshire wilderness where she grew up, not far from her reclusive father. And one does gain a much clearer portrait of JD Salinger in her piece than in the two biographies I've read of the man. Of course, she has the great advantage over those biographers of having lived with him for a time and known him closely much of her li...more
Jun 20, 2007
Lindy Loo
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
auto-biographies-memoirs
This book was fascinating in a lot of ways--I didn't realize, for instance, that Salinger was kind of easily sucked into "cult-like" practices. Then again, about midway through the book, I started to very very deeply hate the author (his daughter) and all her whining and boohooing and woe-is-me-ing. So much of it was interesting, but Margaret Salinger just really needs to suck it up and not be so self-pitying and melodramatic. I don't doubt that Salinger was probably a bastard sometimes as a dad...more
2 likes · like · see review
I liked it, but....sigh....but. Talk about working through your issues. I wonder about "now." She wrote this before her father died. After this came out, did they ever speak again? Did he cut her (or others) out of his will and leave everything to a chipmunk?
I'm very curious about her education. I remember getting into a top graduate school, with all the extras she had...and when I asked the Dean of the Graduate School about scholarships she laughed at me. So how did Ms. Margaret work it? I fe...more
I'm very curious about her education. I remember getting into a top graduate school, with all the extras she had...and when I asked the Dean of the Graduate School about scholarships she laughed at me. So how did Ms. Margaret work it? I fe...more
Okay, another memoir, and what is my comment? The writer was a little self absorbed. Maybe that's a requirement to write one. She actually wrote about how important being popular in school was to her. Gag.
But, the book was more about the relationship Margaret had with her father J.D. Salinger. I did find her memory of living with him in a secluded environment in New Hampshire very interesting. His ideas of how life is to be lived and how much everyone is a "phony". His relationship with her mot...more
But, the book was more about the relationship Margaret had with her father J.D. Salinger. I did find her memory of living with him in a secluded environment in New Hampshire very interesting. His ideas of how life is to be lived and how much everyone is a "phony". His relationship with her mot...more
If I could give this book a negative-10-star rating, I would. It was a battle for me to finish it. I can't go on and waste any more time writing or thinking about it or its nauseating author.
This was kind of an odd book. Written by J.D. Salinger's daughter, the general feeling I got from the book was all over the place. I didn't particularly like the format which was her writing mixed in with quotes and passages from her father's books. It was kind of weird. It was like she was trying to describe her life through his words. The book described her mother and father in depth more and why she turned out a certain way, but then, why do we care about you anyway? It was an odd book. Only...more
I loved this book! Secondarily for the J.D. Salinger bits, although the parallels between his characters and his own history were fascinating. Foremost was the unique voice of the author and her observations that kept me hooked. One passage in particular stood out, when she recalls dressing up for a childhood plane trip and writes of missing, in our current times, the formal clothes that used to signify the importance of events. I can't even do the quote justice so I will just type it out here [...more
J. D. Salinger, berühmt für seinen "Fänger im Roggen" und von mir vor allem für seine Kurzgeschichten geliebt, war wohl einer der bekanntesten Einsiedler der Literaturgeschichte. Seine Tochter hat nun ihre Biografie veröffentlicht, in der es natürlich zu einem großen Teil um ihren berühmten Vater und das abgeschiedene Leben der Familie geht. Zweifellos mit dem erzählerischen Talent ihres Vaters ausgestattet, nimmt sie den Leser mit in die Welt ihrer Kindheit und Jugend.
Margaret Salinger verbinde...more
Margaret Salinger verbinde...more
I didn't even know JD's daughter wrote a memoir until I read his obituary this year. And maybe I'd have been better off if I hadn't read it. I mean, I'd heard all the terrible things about JD and his famed reclusivism; but to hear about it from the perspective of his child has really blown any chance of him now moving beyond bad parent/ mean human being status. Sigh--yet another example of someone with a great mind who can't play well with others. As for Margaret's writing-- just because someone...more
Jan 13, 2009
Ryan
marked it as gave-up
While I've been enjoying this book, it is really depressing. I need a break from the depressing memoirs! A friend mentioned this book portrayed J.D. Salinger in a pretty harsh light, and I have to agree that, yes, it certainly does. The book is well written, and seems to have a lot of thought and research behind it, but again, it seems like the same old same old. A "woe is me" tale. I'm tired of this. What happened to the memoirs that were exciting, and crafted? What happened to writers creating...more
1 like · like · see review
Well, one thing is for sure; JD's method of upbringing did not make the kid a great writer. But who cares? Why should poor JD be in more trouble for that than every other parent whose kid isn't Hemingway?
Serves me right for reading this rather blatantly exploitative book, I guess (part of a project on writers and block, and that's my excuse done). I didn't entirely hate it or the author, but does she exaggerate! She goes on and on about Daddy's funny little ways, but as the book went on and on,...more
Serves me right for reading this rather blatantly exploitative book, I guess (part of a project on writers and block, and that's my excuse done). I didn't entirely hate it or the author, but does she exaggerate! She goes on and on about Daddy's funny little ways, but as the book went on and on,...more
Poor Margaret. This book reads on two levels: first, it's Margaret purging all of her pent-up feelings about being the recipient of the unbearable academic and intellectual pressures that her father, J.D. Salinger, imposed on her.
On the second level, however, there is a daddy's girl still trying to please him by steering away from her natural writing voice and using oddly flowery metaphors and stilted analogies, as if saying "See, I can be a writer, too! I am successful, Daddy!"
On the second level, however, there is a daddy's girl still trying to please him by steering away from her natural writing voice and using oddly flowery metaphors and stilted analogies, as if saying "See, I can be a writer, too! I am successful, Daddy!"
H'mm.
Had Salinger not detailed every event in trips, like a badly assembled slide show, and had she tried to limit the number of major characters to a manageable group -- had she concentrated more on her parents and less on the silliness of a junior high school party gone bad -- she might have presented a self-portrait I could have more empathy with. She simply didn't do her job correctly, nor did her editors. Disappointing.
Had Salinger not detailed every event in trips, like a badly assembled slide show, and had she tried to limit the number of major characters to a manageable group -- had she concentrated more on her parents and less on the silliness of a junior high school party gone bad -- she might have presented a self-portrait I could have more empathy with. She simply didn't do her job correctly, nor did her editors. Disappointing.
11/19 - abandoning, she's going chronological w/ all these footnotes and associations between JDS's work and his life before she was born, and then when i skipped over that to the parts where she has firsthand experience, it's again more mediated by retroactive associations with the works (especially Catcher which i havent read and dont plan to) - i wanted glimpses behind the Glasses and im not getting it from this book
Jul 02, 2010
Adam
added it
The clean descriptive writing makes for a cool yet engaging novel. Less of a emotional response, The Time Machine evokes a deep philosophical response. Wells ponders the human race's physical and cultural evolution. In the end making a strong argument against capatalism. The two races, the Eloi and Morlocks representing the decendents of the wealthy and Industrial classes, respectively.
Let's see. Total Raintree County for this girl. She is some kind of messed up over the way her daddy didn't raise her.
Not that I blame her, though, even if only some of her story is true. If my father were so revered and yet such a ripe, rotten piece of humanity I too might have tried to regain my delicate balance through the
arts. Just not writing. Maybe pastels.
Not that I blame her, though, even if only some of her story is true. If my father were so revered and yet such a ripe, rotten piece of humanity I too might have tried to regain my delicate balance through the
arts. Just not writing. Maybe pastels.
Really added a lot to my reading of J.D. Salinger's work, but on its own.. Margaret Salinger seems to open herself up without revealing anything particularly relatable. There's a great deal of self-pity in the book with only a pale, vague hope toward the end. Not an enjoyable read on its own, but a valuable companion to a collection of J.D.'s work.
I have had this book for at least ten years now. I have picked it up many times expecting to find something interesting and exciting about her father or her relationship with her father. That may be in there but I never got that far. The style is just not something that I want to keep reading. Too bad.
Margaret Salinger's telling of her family life was compelling to me. She writes VERY well, and of course if Salinger was an icon to you, you'll be interested in the story of this dysfunctional family with more than a whiff of mental illness. I didn't find it really depressing though.
I bought this book to learn more about one of my favorite authors, JDS, and the book starts out like a biography of the man, sure enough. It's even a bit overly scholarly at first (footnotes, analysis of Jewish life in America, etc.) and I thought it was going to turn into a tedious read... But the book changes form several times as Peggy excorcises her demons and finds new reasons to keep writing it. You might have heard some of the debate of the ethics of writing this book while her old man is...more
It's much too long, but a great editor could have made this an excellent book. The other side of fame makes you realize that the children of have a very different perspective of fame and and the creative genius. Very glad I wasn't the daughter of JD Salinger.
I keep finding myself thinking, "The over-examined life is not worth reading." I'm 3/4 through this book and still keep vacillating between fascination and dislike. This book was recommended to me though, by a good friend who realized that the author and I share an unmoored childhood and constant sense of unreality.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Maybe I just don't care as much about salinger as I thought I did. Found this book dull, and Margaret seemed more than a little vindictive.
I love this book for Margaret Salinger's courage to share it all (and live through it again!). I was reminded again that not everyone is fit to be a parent. I am not judging her parents but it is remarkable (and inspirational to read) how she lived through it all. I started reading this book keen on all the information I was going to get about her father (especially after having read his letters at the Morgan Library) but ended up admiring Margaret and reminding myself of the importance of embra...more
2 likes · like · see review
Jul 22, 2010
North Olmsted Library
added it
Because Salinger was so private, I resisted reading the book until he died. I wish I hadn't; it was indeed an invasion of his privacy.
wow!! a daddy dearest to be sure! interesting background on j.d. salinger's life as a jew in 1940's america.
I loved this book. It was so interesting to see J.D. Salinger through his daughter's eyes.
Best memoir read since Just Kids , and changing the way I read J.D....!
Read as part of a book club. Interesting look into Salinger's life.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
Margaret Salinger ( born 1955) is the daughter of J.D. Salinger, author of the book Catcher in the Rye.
In 2000 she published Dream Catcher: A Memoir, ISBN 0-671-04282-3, a "tell-all" book about her father. She lives in Massachusetts with her son.
More about Margaret A. Salinger...
In 2000 she published Dream Catcher: A Memoir, ISBN 0-671-04282-3, a "tell-all" book about her father. She lives in Massachusetts with her son.
Share This Book
1 trivia question
More quizzes & trivia...
30. Mai, 04:56 Uhr
31. Mai, 08:59 Uhr
01. Juni, 17:29 Uhr