Today in literary history: July 16

Here's what happened on July 16 in literary history.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger was published in 1951, making it seventy-five years old today.

Literary Hub has no shortage of reflections to mark the occasion, beginning with a quick look at how Salinger started writing and ended with what’s now a classic novel.

• In this excerpt from Great Literary Sisters, Janet Phillips reflects on what Phoebe represents to Holden Caulfield.

• Here are some of the first reviews of the novel.

• It’s never been adapted into a movie, but characters in many movies have been depicted reading it.

And in the Guardian, novelist Joseph O’Connor reflects on Catcher, the novel that made him want to be a writer.