The Catcher in the Rye (Pg 39-80)

Summary
Stadlater comes back from his date with Jane.  He is unsatisfied with the composition Holden wrote, so Holden rips it up since Stradlater didn't appreciate it.  They start talking about the date and Holden starts getting irritated.  Then he randomly takes a swing at Stradlater in the bathroom hoping the toothbrush in his mouth would cut his throat open, but misses.  He ends up on the floor after Stradlater punches him back and is pinned to the floor.  Holden repeatedly calls him a "moron" and he knew people like Stradlater would get annoyed.  Stradlater gets off of him with a warning, and leaves to go to Ackley's room.
Ackley is asleep when Holden goes over and lies to him saying he fought for Ackley's honor. Ackely falls back to sleep and Holden can't stop thinking about Stradlater's date with Jane.  Holden knows Stradlater can pretty much get any girl he wants because of his technique to show he was both sincere and and nice. Then he decides that instead of leaving Wednesday, he was going to leave that night and come back refreshed. He was going to take the train to New York and book a hotel. He packs his stuff and leaves with the money his grandmother sends him for his birthday four times a year.
On the train, he usually buys four magazines and a ham sandwich and could usually read through all tghe magazines but tonight he felt different. A lady boards the train and Holden finds out she's the mother of one of his classmates, Ernest Morrow.  He introduces himself as Rudolf Shmidt, the school janitor, but says he's a student there. He starts "shooting it" which was him basically feeding her crap about Ernest who is the complete opposite of how he's describing him. He lies to her saying he was having an operation to remove a tumor in his brain and she tells him to visit them in the summer,
He got off at Penn Station and wants to call someone but can't because everyone is just going to get him in trouble somehow or he can't reach them.  He checks into the Edmont Hotel and calls it crumby.  From his window he can see the other side of the hotel and other people's rooms.  He sees a guy dressing as a woman and in another window he sees a couple squirting water on each other.  He said he doesn't understand sex that well but he does have his ideas about it. Then he remembered he had the number of a woman in the area that a friend gave him from Princeton.  So he calls up Faith Canvendish and says he wants to meet up with her but never got to.
He thought about his sister who he really cares about and tells about her personality. Next he goes down to the club Lavender Room and see three women and starts dancing with one of them. He starts to like one of them and tells them Gary Cooper just left which bummed her out. They stopped dancing, took their drinks, and left.
Holden remembers being with Jane and how they used to play tennis and golf. Holden is a really good golfer and once almost made it into a movie clip.  He said to never kid a girl you liked and he never used to joke around with Jane which made it uncomfortable for him later on. To stop thinking about her, he takes a cab down to Greenwich Village to Ernie's to listen to him playing the piano.

Quote
"I told him to stop off on the way to the can and give Mrs. Shmidt the time. Mrs. Shmidt was the janitor's wife. She was around sixty-five" (Salinger 45)

Reaction
I found the quote really funny but it reflected how Holden was still immature about resolving conflicts. The short sentences also added to the humor. 

The Catcher in the Rye (Pg 1-39)

Summary
Holden Caufield is the narrator and starts off by telling a short autobiography, though he says he isn't going to tell his "whole goddamn autobiography or anything".  He is giving a description of his life, mentioning his brother D.B. who is a successful writer.  He really starts with the day he left Pencey Prep. He did not meet the requirements of the school and is expelled.  He remembers watching the football game but because he has no interest in it, he goes to Mr. Spencer, his history teacher.
At Mr.Spencer's house, Holden is consulted by Spencer about his situation in life. Holden does not know what he wants to do with his life and is uninterested in school and this reflects on his reports about Egyptians which he wrote a very brief description of and adds a note saying he simply didn't not care and it was alright for Mr.Spencer to flunk him. This will be Holden's fourth school he is transferring from, and feels like he will disappoint his parents.
Holden calls himself a liar after lying to Mr.Spencer to leave the lecture.  He goes back to his dorm and starts reading Out of Africa and then starts talking about his classmate Ackley who he finds irritating. Stradlater comes in shortly and and Ackley hates him, but Holden does not have much of a problem with him other than him appearing to be clean but in fact, is unhygienic. Holden is irritated when Stradlater asks him to write him a paper in order for him to go on a date and realizes the irony that even though he is leaving, he's still doing work for others.
On Saturday, Holden spends his night with Mal Brossard to see a movie.  He invites Ackley along knowing he doesn't have anything to do. When they come back, Holden finishes writing the essay for Stradlater and mentions the death of his brother Allie four years ago.  That night he slept in his garage and punched out all the windows.

Quote
"Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays according to its rules." (Salinger 8)

Reaction
I felt this quote foreshadows Holden's growth throughout the book because right now he's kind of like a loser with no idea what to do with his life.  He's questioning the people around him, and he sounds like he feels out of place in his world.  I think soon he will understand that "life is a game that one plays according to its rules" is saying that he will have to be like everyone else to live his life happily, even if he questions conforming.