The Catcher in the Rye vs The pursuit of Alice Thrift: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Interpersonal relations, Bildungsromans, Fiction
The Catcher in the Rye
“I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life. It's awful. If I'm on my way to the store to buy a magazine, even, and somebody asks me where I'm going, I'm liable to say I'm going to the opera. It's terrible.”
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Story of Holden Caufield with his idiosyncrasies, penetrating insight, confusion, sensitivity and negativism. Holden, knowing he is to be expelled from school, decides to leave early. He spends three days in New York…
The pursuit of Alice Thrift
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Alice Thrift, a socially inept surgical intern at a Boston hospital, is pursued romantically by shady social climber Ray Russo, until her roommate and her neighbor decide to guide Alice through the social complexities…
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- The Catcher in the Rye has the widest readership — 4000723 ratings behind its score.
- The Catcher in the Rye runs the darker storyline; The pursuit of Alice Thrift stays the lighter read.
How to choose
Scores by source
| The Catcher in the Rye | The pursuit of Alice Thrift | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 3.8 (4000723) | — |
| Hardcover | 3.6 (3821) | 3.8 (5) |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (1901) | 3.5 (20) |
Reception
| The Catcher in the Rye | The pursuit of Alice Thrift | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 4000723 | 20 |
| Editions | 204 | 7 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | — |
| Want to read | 1746505 | — |
| Reading it now | 48165 | — |
| Written reviews | 109864 | — |
| Wikipedia attention | 69462 | — |
| Pages | 255 | 269 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: The Catcher in the Rye or The pursuit of Alice Thrift?
The Catcher in the Rye has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Catcher in the Rye 3.8/5, The pursuit of Alice Thrift 3.7/5).
Which is shorter to read: The Catcher in the Rye or The pursuit of Alice Thrift?
The Catcher in the Rye is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Catcher in the Rye (255 pages, ≈ 4 h 43 m); The pursuit of Alice Thrift (269 pages, ≈ 4 h 59 m).
Which is harder to read: The Catcher in the Rye or The pursuit of Alice Thrift?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Catcher in the Rye: Moderate; The pursuit of Alice Thrift: Moderate.