Upon its publication in September, 1961,

Franny and Zooey

immediately shot to the number one spot on the

New York Times

bestseller list and stayed there for twenty-six weeks. As it was his first novel-length work to be published following the phenomenal success of

The Catcher in the Rye

, and following his highly acclaimed short story collection

Nine Stories

(1953), readers and critics alike had high expectations, but early reception of the book vacillated between praise and scathing commentary. In the half century since its publication, Salinger’s slim body of work has been exalted, then shunned, and is now experiencing renewed interest with the news that some of his mysteriously shrouded works are scheduled for publication starting next year.

Born on January 1, 1919 to Sol and Miriam

1879 words

Citation: McQuillan, Jennifer . "Franny and Zooey". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 05 August 2014 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=5028, accessed 19 March 2024.]

5028 Franny and Zooey 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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