A famed recluse, J.D. Salinger probably would have hated being celebrated in any way, and yet celebration has come for him. In advance of the centennial of Salinger’s birth on January 1, 2019, Little, Brown has announced plans to honor the author, including a special series of reissues of his work. As part of that event, the publisher is putting out a new set of Salinger’s major works The Catcher in the Rye, Nine Stories, Franny and Zooey, Raise High the Roof Beam, and Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction. Vulture has an exclusive look at the covers of the new trade paperbacks below – there will also be an unjacketed paperback set. Little, Brown will release these editions in November of this year and they will be available throughout 2019.
“My father hated birthdays, holidays, and pretty much any planned or culturally mandated celebrations, and he’d certainly hate this Centennial — but he loved writing and he loved his readers, and I hope his readers will be glad for an excuse to remember him in this way,†Matt Salinger, J.D.’s son, said in a statement. As for what Salinger might have hated, Little, Brown is planning a series of events in bookstores and libraries across the country around his work, while the New York Public Library is planning an exhibition from Salinger’s archive for October 2019.
As to speculation that Salinger left instructions for his unpublished manuscripts to be released to the public between 2015 and 2020, a representative told Vulture, “We look at the centennial as a time to celebrate, shine new light on, and re-engage with Salinger’s enduring classics.â€