Salinger Sues Over 'Catcher' Sequel

After decades in deep seclusion, famed author JD Salinger has emerged, almost. Salinger, 90, filed a lawsuit to contest the upcoming sequel to his signature work, "Catcher in the Rye."

According to the New York Daily News, Salinger's lawyers claim that the novel, titled "60 Years Later: Coming Through the Rye," is "a rip-off pure and simple." The book, written by an anonymous author with the pen name JD California, features Holden Caulfield, the narrator of the original book, in a retirement home in Upstate New York.

Not everyone agrees with Salinger's actions. The BBC reports that California called Salinger's legal action "a little bit insane," and later said, "I did not mean to cause [Salinger] any trouble." The Swedish-based publishers behind the book reject the grounds of the lawsuit even more firmly, calling it "ludicrous."

Similarly, in an opinion piece on The Huffington Post, Vicki Karp argues that over time any work as well known as "Catcher in the Rye" ceases to be the author's property alone. "[The] general feeling among readers is that books 50 years or older naturally lean into fences of privacy until they pretty much touch down on public domain."

Salinger however claims that the sequel violates the copyright he holds on the book and on the characters. He has filed copyright violation claims on previous occasions as well, but as the BBC notes, he has never personally stepped into a courtroom to defend himself. Maybe this time will be different.