The Catcher in the Rye Summary
Description
Here you will find a The Catcher in the Rye summary (J.D. Salinger's book).
We begin with a summary of the entire book, and then you can read each individual chapter's summary by visiting the links on the "Chapters" section.
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Last Updated: Monday 1 Jan, 2024
Chapters
Chapters The Catcher in the Rye Summary Overview
The story unfolds in the 1950s, with a young lad named Holden Caulfield, currently undergoing mental care, retelling events that transpired when he was sixteen. The incidents revolve around the few days after the end of his school term and before Christmas. We find Holden at Pencey prep school in Pennsylvania, where he confronts expulsion after failing four out of five classes. Amid his preparations to leave, he is further annoyed by his unsanitary neighbor, Ackley, and his roommate, Stradlater, who dates Jane Gallagher, a girl Holden admires. After a heated argument with Stradlater over Jane, Holden decides to leave for Manhattan early, without informing his parents. Once in New York, Holden weaves fibs about a schoolmate to his mother on the train, before reaching the city and checking into Edmont Hotel. From his hotel room, he witnesses bizarre behaviors of other guests, leading him to contact Faith Cavendish, a woman he believes he can convince to sleep with him. After a failed encounter with Faith, Holden visits the Lavender Room where he dances and flirts with women, reminisces about Jane, visits a jazz club, and has a disastrous encounter with a prostitute. The next day, Holden reaches out to Sally Hayes, an old flame, leading to a sour meeting after he proposes they run away together. Drunk, Holden speaks incoherently to Sally about his holiday plans, wanders to the lagoon in Central Park, and sneaks into his apartment to meet his sister, Phoebe. After a heart-to-heart with Phoebe, Holden visits his former English teacher, Mr. Antolini, whose advice and affection send him fleeing. He sends Phoebe a note of his decision to leave home and meets her at the museum. Phoebe's insistence on accompanying him ends in an emotional scene at the carousel in the park. The narrative ends with Holden, not mentioning how he fell ill and returned home, but looking forward to starting anew at a different school in the fall.
chapter 1
Narrating from a therapeutic facility, Holden Caulfield begins his tale, glossing over his early life and focusing on his frustrations with his brother D.B., a film writer whom he feels has traded his literary talents for Hollywood's glamour. He then delves into the events leading up to his mental collapse, starting with his exit from Pencey Prep in Pennsylvania. Despite being a student at Pencey Prep, Holden shows a distinct lack of effort towards his studies, leading to him failing four out of five subjects and being asked to leave the institution. As the school's annual football match against Saxon Hall unfolds, Holden, the fencing team's manager, has no interest in the game. His negligence led to him losing the team's equipment on the subway, which prematurely ended their New York trip. Though Holden displays disdain for the school, he seeks a proper farewell. He nostalgically recalls evenings spent tossing a football with friends. Choosing to say his goodbyes, he leaves the match to visit his ailing former history teacher, Mr. Spencer. Despite being breathless from his smoking habit, Holden arrives at his teacher's house, where he's welcomed by Spencer's wife and proceeds to meet his teacher.
chapter 2
The chapter opens with Holden Caulfield meeting with Mr. Spencer and his wife, who he appears to share a close relationship with. Despite being slightly disturbed by Spencer's deteriorating health, Holden maintains a level of respect for his teacher. The older man attempts to admonish Holden for his academic struggles and reiterates the headmaster's belief that life is a game requiring adherence to certain rules. Despite his evident fondness for Holden, Spencer is straightforward in informing him about his academic failure. He even goes as far as to make Holden listen to his poorly written essay on ancient Egypt. He insists on discussing Holden's future, but the young man, uninterested in the lecture, interrupts Spencer and leaves. He retreats back to his dormitory before dinnertime.
chapter 3
Living in Ossenburger Hall, Holden spends time reading Isak Dinesen's 'Out of Africa' while sporting his eccentric red hunting hat. He is disturbed by Ackley, a bothersome, acne-ridden classmate who resides next door and has a tendency to intrude upon his privacy with his appalling personal habits and intrusive questions. Despite Holden's clear disapproval, Ackley continues his irksome behavior, which includes trimming his nails on the floor. The arrival of Stradlater, Holden's attractive and popular roommate, sends Ackley, who despises Stradlater, back to his own room. Stradlater discloses that he has a date waiting and needs to shave.
chapter 4
Holden accompanies Stradlater to the restroom, engaging in conversation as Stradlater shaves. Holden notices Stradlater's lack of personal hygiene, despite his physical appeal, contrasting it to Ackley's noticeable lack of cleanliness and attractiveness. Labeling Stradlater a "hidden slob," Holden finds humor in their interactions. Stradlater, pressed for time due to a date, requests Holden's help with an English assignment. The revelation that the date is Jane Gallagher, a girl Holden has affections for, leaves him distressed. Despite his inner turmoil, he vividly recollects Jane and her love for keeping her kings in the back row in checkers. Stradlater's lack of interest and the fact that he even misnames Jane as "Jean" displease Holden, who is apprehensive about a sexually experienced Stradlater dating Jane. Though he desires to greet Jane, his mood prevents him. Stradlater borrows Holden's hound’s-tooth jacket before departing for his date. Following Stradlater's departure, Holden is haunted by thoughts of Jane and Stradlater. Ackley invades Holden’s room again, spending his time popping pimples until it's time for dinner.
chapter 5
Post a rather bland steak meal, Holden indulges in a snowball fight with fellow Pencey students. Along with his pal Mal Brossard, they venture into Agerstown to catch a movie—a form of entertainment Holden despises—and manage to coax Ackley into joining them. With the movie already viewed by Ackley and Brossard, they instead enjoy some hamburgers, engage in pinball, and return to Pencey. Upon their return, Mal sets off to find a bridge game while Ackley occupies Holden’s bed, popping pimples and fabricating tales about a girl he allegedly had an intimate encounter with the previous summer. Holden manages to get Ackley to leave by starting on an English assignment for Stradlater. The task mandated a basic description of a room, house, or something similar. However, Holden struggles to find inspiration in such mundane subjects and instead pens about a baseball glove his brother Allie used to inscribe poems on in green ink. Allie, who was two years Holden's junior, succumbed to leukemia a few years prior. Despite his age, Holden cites him as the smartest in their family and remembers him as an incredibly kind and guileless child. His passing still affects Holden, who describes Allie's bright red hair and the night of his passing, where Holden slept in the garage and shattered all the windows with his fists. After completing Stradlater's assignment, he gazes out the window, listening to the sound of Ackley's snores from the adjacent room.
chapter 6
Stradlater returns from his date and is upset by Holden’s off-topic composition, leading to Holden tearing it up in a fit of rage. As tension escalates, Holden antagonizes Stradlater by smoking in the room and asking intrusive questions about his date with Jane. Stradlater's nonchalance regarding the details of the date triggers a physical confrontation, with Holden on the receiving end of a bloody nose. Despite the subsequent concern for his own repercussions, Stradlater is pushed away by Holden's constant mockery and leaves the room. A blood-splattered Holden then enters Ackley's room.
chapter 7
Holden engages in a conversation with Ackley before attempting to sleep in the vacant bed of Ackley's roommate. However, his mind is occupied by thoughts of Jane and Stradlater together, preventing him from sleeping. He rouses Ackley for a chat, discussing the possibility of joining a monastery despite not being Catholic. Holden's irritation with Ackley's pretentiousness leads him to leave. In the dormitory corridor, he resolves to immediately head to New York instead of postponing till Wednesday. He plans to covertly spend a few days there, allowing his parents to process his expulsion before he arrives home. He gathers his belongings, puts on his hunting cap, and tears fill his eyes. As he ventures into the hallway, he shouts "Sleep tight, ya morons!" to his dorm mates before leaving Pencey for good.
chapter 8
Holden embarks on a trek to the train station and boards a late-night train bound for New York. On the way, a charming older lady joins him, who happens to be Ernest Morrow's mother, a fellow student Holden loathes. Nevertheless, he spins outrageous tales about Ernest to his mother, dubbing him the most admired boy at school who declined a nomination for class president. Holden introduces himself as Rudolph Schmidt, borrowing the name of their school's custodian. In response to her inquiry about his premature departure from Pencey, Holden fabricates a story about needing a brain tumor surgery in New York.
chapter 9
Holden is at Penn Station with the desire to phone someone, yet he feels he has no one to reach out to. His brother, D.B., is in Hollywood, his sister, Phoebe, is too young and likely asleep, and he doesn't want to bother Jane Gallagher. Sally Hayes is also out of the question as her mother despises him. Eventually, he hails a cab to the Edmont Hotel without making any phone calls. He attempts to engage the taxi driver in a conversation about the Central Park ducks, but the driver shows no interest. At his hotel room in the Edmont, he observes strange activities through the lighted windows across the courtyard. He spots a man dressing in women's attire and another couple amusingly spitting drinks into each other's faces. Getting aroused, he decides to call Faith Cavendish, a girl known for her loose morals, suggested by a boy he'd met at a party. He tries to arrange a date, but she declines, stating she needs rest. She proposes a meeting the following day, but an impatient Holden rejects the offer and disconnects the call without setting a date.
chapter 10
Despite his earlier restlessness, Holden decides to venture into the Lavender Room, the nightclub in Edmont. Before heading out, he contemplates calling his younger sister, Phoebe. He nostalgically describes her, highlighting similarities with his brother Allie, like her red hair and precocious intelligence. He fondly remembers their shared experience of watching Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps, noting her wit and originality, especially in her creation of a character named “Hazle” Weatherfield in her endless fictional narratives. He views her only shortcoming as her possibly excessive sensitivity. Once in the Lavender Room, Holden tries to buy a drink. Despite usually passing off as older due to his tall stature and gray hair, this time he is denied. He engages with three out-of-town women from Seattle in flirtatious banter and dance. The women find him amusing but remain indifferent to his attempts at seeming mature and sophisticated. As they start mocking him and reveal their celebrity obsession, he feels disheartened. In a failed attempt to impress them, he lies about spotting Gary Cooper, leading one of them to falsely claim she too had seen the star. After settling their bar tab, Holden takes his leave from the Lavender Room.
chapter 11
Departing for the lobby, Holden recalls memories of Jane. Their families owned neighboring summer homes in Maine where they first met due to a dispute involving a Doberman pinscher using the Caulfield's lawn as its bathroom. Holden shared a unique connection with Jane, she was the only one he ever entrusted with Allie's baseball glove. One distressing event involved Jane's alcoholic stepfather approaching them while playing checkers for a cigarette. Jane remained silent, breaking down in tears after his departure. Holden comforted her intensely, despite their physical contact being typically limited to holding hands. Recalling holding Jane's hand, Holden notes the overwhelming feeling of happiness it brought him. Suddenly disturbed by his memories, Holden retreats back to his room and observes the extinguished lights in the rooms of the "deviants". Still unable to sleep, he descends to the lobby and hails a cab.
chapter 12
Holden travels by taxi to Ernie's, a Greenwich Village nightclub he frequently visited with D. B. His taxi driver, Horwitz, becomes an unexpected source of amusement for Holden. However, when Holden tries to discuss the ducks in Central Park lagoon, Horwitz responds furiously. Inside Ernie's, Holden is unimpressed by Ernie's piano playing. He settles at a table, sips Scotch and soda, and eavesdrops on surrounding dialogues, which he finds artificial and disheartening. An annoying girl named Lillian Simmons, a former love interest of D. B.'s, forces Holden to prematurely exit the nightclub to avoid her.
chapter 13
Walking the extensive distance from Ernie's nightclub to his hotel, Holden contemplates about his stolen gloves from Pencey, fantasizing about confronting the thief. Yet, he admits to being fearful of conflict and aggression. Upon reaching the Edmont, he agrees to the elevator operator's proposition of sending a prostitute to his room for five dollars, despite his discomfort. Holden broods over his inability to engage intimately with a woman due to his non-aggressive nature. As he ponders, the prostitute, Sunny, appears. A cynical young woman with a high-pitched voice, she disrobes and attempts to seduce him, raising Holden's anxiety. He declines her advances, citing a recent "clavichord" surgery as an excuse. After paying her the agreed-upon five dollars, he asks her to leave. Insisting on a higher price of ten dollars, she departs disgruntled when he declines to pay the additional amount.
chapter 14
Holden spends time in his hotel room, smoking and reminiscing about an unfortunate occurrence where he left Allie out of a BB-gun game. The remorse continues to haunt him. He considers praying but his aversion to structured religion stops him. Suddenly, a knock interrupts his solitude. Answering the door in his pajamas, he faces Maurice, the robust elevator operator who comes back with Sunny, demanding the additional five dollars. Holden resists, but Maurice forcefully intervenes, allowing Sunny to grab the money from his wallet. Maurice injures Holden, leaving him collapsed on the floor. Holden fantasizes about retaliating like a film character, taking vengeance on Maurice. Finally, despite his battered state, he manages to retreat to bed and fall asleep.
chapter 15
After waking up, Holden reaches out to Sally Hayes and arranges an afternoon date. He departs from his hotel and stashes his luggage in a locker at Grand Central Station. His concerns about losing his cash are voiced, and he shares his father's annoyance at his habit of misplacing items. His mother, still under the weather since his brother Allie's passing, is also described. Holden is particularly concerned that the news of his expulsion might upset his already delicate mother, whom he deeply cares for. He heads to a small sandwich shop for breakfast where he meets two nuns relocating to Manhattan to teach. This encounter triggers thoughts about the shallow, money-focused environment of his former prep school. He engages in a conversation about Romeo and Juliet with one of the nuns. Despite his previous dislike for institutionalized religion, he insists they accept a ten-dollar donation from him. After they depart, he regrets not giving more, even though he requires cash for his date with Sally. This leads him to the conclusion that money always brings about feelings of despair.
chapter 16
Following his meal, Holden takes a leisurely stroll, contemplating the charity of the nuns he met and struggling to think of anyone he knows who could be as benevolent. He travels down Broadway in search of a particular record, “Little Shirley Beans,” intending it as a gift for his sister Phoebe. Despite being a children’s record, its appeal lies in its unique delivery by an African-American blues singer, lending it a raw rather than cutesy tone. He fondly thinks of Phoebe, valuing her understanding and wisdom despite her young age of ten. During his walk, he observes a young, carefree boy singing “If a body catch a body coming through the rye,” a sight that uplifts his spirits. Feeling encouraged, he attempts to call Jane but prematurely ends the call once her mother picks up the phone. In anticipation of his date with Sally, he purchases tickets to a show titled “I Know My Love,” featuring the Lunts. His thoughts then return to Phoebe, prompting him to search for her at the park, a place she often frequents for roller-skating on Sundays. He encounters a girl aware of Phoebe's whereabouts, who initially tells him Phoebe is at the Museum of Natural History on a school trip, but later recalls that the trip happened the day before. Regardless, Holden travels to the museum, reminiscing about his own school visits there. The museum, with its static exhibitions of Eskimos, Indians, and birds seemingly suspended in flight, serves as a stark contrast to his own evolving life. He can’t help but reflect on the unchanged nature of the museum in comparison to his own transformation each time he visited.
chapter 17
Holden meets a late Sally at the Biltmore Hotel and instantly forgives her tardiness due to her attractiveness. Their journey to the theater initiates an intimate interaction in the taxi. During the play, Holden gets frustrated with the actors' smugness and skill, much akin to Ernie the pianist. Sally's flirtation with a pompous Andover boy during intermission irritates Holden, but he still consents to accompany her to the ice-skating rink at Radio City Music Hall. While skating, Holden suspects Sally's sole motive is to flaunt her appealing figure in a short skirt. Taking a break indoors, Holden's mental state begins to deteriorate. He fluctuates between loud outbursts and whispers, airing his grievances about the pretentious individuals at his prep schools and within New York society, expressing his sense of estrangement. His erratic behavior intensifies as he suggests he and Sally abandon society and elope to live in isolation in a cabin. Sally's dismissal of his irrational aspirations escalates his agitation. Their disagreement peaks when Holden insults Sally, reducing her to tears. Although he attempts an apology, Sally is furious and hurt, prompting Holden to depart alone.
chapter 18
Following his departure from the ice rink, Holden visits a drugstore where he consumes a Swiss cheese sandwich and a malted drink. He contemplates contacting Jane once more, though he gets sidetracked by memories of her dancing with a guy Holden deemed a braggart. Jane, however, defended the boy, claiming he suffered from a lack of self-esteem. Yet Holden assumes that girls often use this as a justification to date conceited boys. Despite his hesitation, he attempts to call Jane, but she doesn't pick up. Instead, he reaches out to Carl Luce, a former acquaintance from Whooton School, who agrees to join him for a drink later. In an effort to pass time, Holden decides to see a film at the Radio City Music Hall. Although he considers the Rockettes’ Christmas show shallow and absurd, it brings back fond memories of watching the kettledrum player with his brother Allie. Despite the drummer's negligible presence, the man seemed to find pleasure in his work. As the film, a war movie, begins, Holden finds it dull too. After it ends, he heads towards the Wicker Bar to meet Luce. The war film prompts him to ponder over the army. From what his brother D.B. has disclosed, Holden concludes that he could never serve in the military. His preferences are rather extreme - facing a firing squad or perching atop an atomic bomb.
chapter 19
Holden is at the Wicker Bar in the upscale Seton Hotel, contemplating about Luce, who is three years his senior and studying at Columbia University. While they were at Whooton School, Luce used to enlighten the younger boys on the topic of sex. Despite Luce's effeminate and dishonest nature, Holden finds him entertaining. However, when Luce arrives, he acts distant towards Holden and dismisses his curiosity about sex, unlike their past discussions at Whooton. Luce implies that Holden should seek psychoanalysis, reflecting on the fact that Luce's father is a psychoanalyst. When Holden inquires if Luce's father ever analyzed him, Luce sidesteps the question. Frustrated by Holden's immature remarks and inquiries, Luce makes his exit.
chapter 20
Following Luce's departure, Holden continues to drink heavily at the bar and ends up considerably intoxicated. He drunkenly dials Sally Hayes, leading to a late-night conversation that irritates both Sally and her grandmother. He fails in his attempts to arrange a meeting with the beautiful lounge singer, Valencia, and equally unsuccessful in achieving a date with the hat-check girl. Deciding to venture to Central Park's duck pond, he wants to check if the ducks have returned. En route, he becomes agitated when he accidentally drops and shatters the record he had purchased as a gift for Phoebe. His hair starts to freeze and develop icicles due to the water he had used previously to sober himself. Arriving at the pond, his mind becomes consumed with fear of contracting pneumonia and he starts visualizing his own funeral. He confesses his regret of missing Allie’s funeral due to his hospitalization following an incident where he smashed the garage windows with his fists. Reminiscing about his visit to Allie’s grave with his parents leaves him feeling distressed and melancholic, as the thought of laying flowers on the burial ground unsettles him. Running low on funds and yearning to speak to Phoebe, Holden resolves to risk a visit home. He anticipates his parents to be asleep, enabling him to quietly enter, converse with Phoebe, and exit unnoticed. He departs the park and embarks on the lengthy journey home.
chapter 21
Holden ascends to his family apartment via the elevator, managing to deceive the substitute operator by posing as a visitor to the Dicksteins, his neighbors. He stealthily enters his family's apartment but finds his sister Phoebe's room empty. Deciding to check D.B.'s room, where Phoebe often sleeps when D.B. is away, he finds Phoebe asleep, looking serene, which he attributes to being a child. As Phoebe sleeps, Holden peruses her schoolbooks, smiling at her quirky notes, questions, imaginative doodles and the way she signs her name as "Phoebe Weatherfield Caulfield." Awakening Phoebe, her excitement to see him is palpable as she energetically discusses various topics ranging from her school play and recent movies to D.B.'s current project and a bully at school. She also informs him that their parents are at a party and will be returning late. However, her enthusiasm wanes when she realizes Holden's early return implies his expulsion from school, leading her to repeatedly express the fear of their father's wrath. Despite his attempts to explain his actions, Phoebe remains unconvinced and shields herself with a pillow. Holden, thus, exits the room to fetch some cigarettes.
chapter 22
Holden rejoins Phoebe in her room, managing to capture her attention. He attempts to justify his academic failures by expressing his disdain for school in general, to which she retorts that he despises everything in life. In denial, he struggles to mention one thing he likes, and his mind drifts to the memory of the nuns he had breakfast with and James Castle, a former schoolmate from Elkton Hills whom he recalls taking his own life under intense bullying. His reply to Phoebe's challenge is that he likes Allie, which triggers an angry reminder from her that Allie is no longer alive. When she questions his life plans, he refers to a line from a song that goes, "If a body catch a body comin' through the rye." He dreams of a massive rye field at the edge of a cliff, teeming with children at play, where he plays the role of a guardian, saving the children from falling off the edge, positioning himself as "the catcher in the rye." Phoebe corrects him, revealing that the original verse from Robert Burns' poem, "Coming Thro' the Rye," says, "If a body meet a body coming through the rye."
chapter 23
Holden briefly steps out of Phoebe’s room to phone Mr. Antolini, a former English teacher from Elkton Hills who expresses disbelief at Holden's latest expulsion and offers him shelter for the night. Holden narrates that Mr. Antolini was the sole teacher who dared to approach James Castle’s body after his fatal fall, illustrating his courage and compassion. Holden returns to Phoebe's room and coaxes her into a dance. Upon hearing their parents return from an evening out, he attempts to dissipate the cigarette smoke and hides in the wardrobe. When his mother arrives to say goodnight to Phoebe, he lays low until she departs. After bidding Phoebe goodbye and revealing his intentions to head west alone, she lends him her saved Christmas money. On his departure to Mr. Antolini's house, he gifts Phoebe his cherished red hunting hat.
chapter 24
Upon reaching Mr. Antolini's, Holden finds himself amidst the remnants of a finished dinner party in Mr. Antolini's opulent Sutton Place flat. As he sits to converse with Mr. Antolini, it's evident from the scattered dishes and glasses that the host has been drinking. As Mrs. Antolini busies herself preparing coffee, the discussion turns to Holden's expulsion from Pencey Prep. He expresses his disdain for the rigid rules at the school and cites the penalties for deviation in his debate class as an example. Instead of commiserating, Mr. Antolini counters Holden's viewpoint, highlighting the potential distractions of such digressions and the benefits of staying on point. This makes Holden question his stance, creating an uneasy atmosphere, which is diffused by Mrs. Antolini serving coffee. Mr. Antolini then adopts a serious tone, expressing concern about Holden's future, hinting at a catastrophic downfall due to his frustrations and growing resentment towards his peers, similar to those he detested at school. Holden becomes protective and cites the developing fondness he had for classmates like Ackley and Stradlater. Mr. Antolini elaborates on his prediction of Holden's "fall", attributing it to an inability to adapt to his environment. He advises Holden to focus on his studies, assuring him that he will find others who have struggled with similar issues, and will gain a deeper understanding of himself. Although intrigued by Mr. Antolini's words, Holden is too tired to continue the discussion. After making up the couch for Holden and some light conversation about girls, Mr. Antolini allows him to sleep. Later, Holden is jolted awake to find Mr. Antolini stroking his hair. When Mr. Antolini downplays the incident, Holden interprets it as a sexual advance and hastily exits the apartment.
chapter 25
Following his departure from Mr. Antolini's, Holden takes refuge for the night at Grand Central Station. He spends the following day wandering Fifth Avenue, anxiety gradually enveloping him as he watches the children. With every street he crosses, he feels himself vanishing, and he silently begs his deceased brother Allie to help him reach the other side. He contemplates leaving New York for good, hitchhiking westward and never returning to his home or school. He envisions a life of solitude, with a deaf-mute bride and no social interactions. He then proceeds to Phoebe’s school to deliver her a note, instructing her to meet him at the Museum of Art to retrieve the money she had loaned him. Exploring his old institution amplifies his melancholy, as he encounters offensive graffiti. At the museum, he guides two children to the mummy exhibit, but they flee out of fear, leaving Holden isolated in the dimly lit, congested corridor. He is initially content, but upon spotting the same offensive words on the wall, he retreats, imagining those words on his tombstone. After a near fainting spell on his way to the restroom, he waits for Phoebe. Phoebe arrives at the museum, suitcase in tow, pleading to accompany him. As he grows increasingly dizzy, he rejects her request, fearing another fainting spell. She reacts with hurt and anger, handing back his hunting hat. He assures her he's not leaving and tries to send her back to school, but she refuses. In a bid to pacify her, he suggests a trip to the zoo. At the zoo, they remain physically separated by the street, with Phoebe walking sullenly behind. They observe the animals and then walk to the park, now side by side but still emotionally distant. At the carousel, he persuades Phoebe to ride and watches her from a park bench. With their relationship restored, he dons his red hunting hat, and in a moment of overwhelming joy, he's on the verge of tears.
chapter 26
The narrative concludes with Holden declining to share the events following his park visit with Phoebe. He admits to returning home, falling ill, and subsequently being admitted to the care home where he narrates his tale from. He anticipates attending a different school in the upcoming academic year, expressing intentions to work hard, but refrains from discussing it further. He expresses regret over revealing much about his experiences, even to D.B., who frequently visits him at the care home. The act of recounting his past makes him yearn for the characters from his story.
