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Nine Stories by J.D. Salinger may be one of the best collections of short stories that I have read. It was clear from the opening story, A Perfect Day for Bananafish, followed by Uncle Wiggly in Connecticut, that this was the writing of probably one of the greatest authors of the twentieth century. And my favorite was For Esme--with Love and Squalor.

Quite a few years ago, when I became interested in the literary works of J.D. Salinger, I read what was touted as the definitive biography by David Shields, Salinger. I found the book riveting, particularly the graphic portrayals of Salinger's experiences during World War II, including the landing on Utah Beach in Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944, and all that ensued. Salinger also fought in the Battle of the Bulge near the end of the war and was also among the first soldiers to enter the recently liberated concentration camp at Dachau, Germany. Salinger, like so many others, was deeply affected by his experiences during the war and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. The effects of this PTSD informed his writing from then on. And never was it so striking as in this treasure of short stories, many of them written for The New Yorker.

This was such a compelling book by one of our master literary authors of the twentieth century. A humble salute, not only to J.D. Salinger's literary expertise but to his humanity and service to our country. I was so touched by his writing in a foxhole while the bombs were falling all around. And I know that one of his favorite authors was Ernest Hemingway, who we know had a typewriter in his foxhole as they both gave us some of the greatest literature of the twentieth century. Thank you.