Salinger: A Biography is the first full-length, popular account of American literature's great recluse in over thirty-years, giving new insights into the author of Salinger was one of the most successful writers of American short fiction - the quintessential New Yorker writer - when he was only in his twenties and thirties. Then, mysteriously, he withdrew from the world, retiring to a cabin in New Hampshire where he continues to write; he has not been published since the early 1960's. Paul Alexander, a bestselling biographer and journalist has carefully researched and masterfully describes Salinger the icon. He answers the numerous questions that encircle the life and legacy of J.D. Salinger: Why did critics become unreceptive to Salinger's stories as he grew older? Why are the important women of his life so much younger than he? Why does he sometimes seem to be playing peek-a-boo with his admirers? If he truly wants to be left alone, why does he leave so many clues? Why have his books been linked to famously psychotic youths such as the assassin of John Lennon and the would-be assassin of President Reagan?