Salinger

The icon who disappeared. Raised in Park Avenue privilege, J. D. Salinger sought out combat, surviving five bloody battles of World War II and the liberation of a death camp, and out of that crucible he created a novel, The Catcher in the Rye, which journeyed deep into his own despair and redefined postwar America. For more than fifty years, Salinger has been one of the most elusive figures in American history. All of the attempts to uncover the truth about why he disappeared have been undermined by a lack of access and the recycling of inaccurate information. In the course of a nine-year investigation, and especially in the three years since Salinger's death, David Shields and Shane Salerno have interviewed more than 200 people on five continents (many of whom had previously refused to go on the record) to solve the mystery of what happened to Salinger.--From publisher description.

We're going to start the war from right here -- Slight rebellion off Park Avenue -- Six-feet-two of muscle and typewriter ribbon in a foxhole -- Inverted forest -- Dead men in winter -- Still burning -- Victim and perpetrator -- Measuring up -- The origin of Esmé -- Is the kid in this book crazy -- We can still run away -- Follow the bullet: Nine stories -- His long dark night -- A terrible, terrible fall -- Seymour's second suicide -- Dear Miss Maynard -- Dear Mr. Salinger -- Assassins -- A private citizen -- A million miles away in his tower -- Jerome David Salinger: a conclusion -- Secrets -- Fiction in chronological order of publication -- Lost stories, uncollected stories, and published letters -- The Glass family.