Holden Caulfield climbs into a late-night cab that smells like vomit and strikes up a conversation with his driver, Horwitz — who has very strong opinions about fish. Meanwhile, New York City feels lonesome and enormous, and Holden still won't go home.

Banned Camp is a comedy podcast where we read banned books chapter by chapter — we don't read ahead, so you're discovering the story with us.

Things To Listen For:

Holden asks cab driver Horwitz about the Central Park ducks — Horwitz doesn't care about the ducks, but he has a passionate, completely wrong theory about how fish survive winter through their pores
Jennifer nails the loneliness of this chapter: Holden's in the vomit cab going nowhere in the dark, watching couples laugh on the street, with nobody to go home to
Dan makes the case for just ripping the bandaid off — go home, tell your parents you got kicked out, and get it over with
Beowulf Rochlen brings good news: a California school district reversed its ban on the dystopian novel Scythe — and the show gets into whether banning AI counts as censorship

Why was The Catcher in the Rye banned? The novel has been challenged repeatedly for its language, themes of teenage alienation, and what many school boards have called a corrupting influence on young readers — which is a solid reason to read it out loud on a podcast.

If this is your first episode, you're fine starting here. Our fact-checking Robot catches you up fast, then we read the next chapter (spoilers).

Banworthy to Bingeworthy

While we're all out here reading dangerous books, here are two podcasts worth your time:

Good News for Lefties — Beowulf Rochlen's show, bringing you the news stories from the left that actually deserve your attention. Find it wherever you get your podcasts.
MSNow Presents Clock It! — Simone Sanders Townsend and her co-host position themselves at the intersection of culture and politics, breaking down what's happening in the news so you can start to clock it too. New episodes drop Thursdays.

Rate, Review, & Follow on Apple Podcasts Rate, review, and follow us on Apple Podcasts to help other scary book people find us!

Disclaimer

Banned Camp features readings and discussions of banned books for the purpose of criticism, commentary, education, and entertainment, in accordance with fair use guidelines.

The material used from the book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is shared under these principles, with the intent of provoking thought and discussion about literature, censorship, and societal issues. The original work remains fully owned by its copyright holders, and we strongly encourage listeners to purchase a copy here to experience the book in its entirety.

This podcast is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to J.D. Salinger, his estate, or the publishers of The Catcher in the Rye. Any monetization of the podcast is separate from the copyrighted material discussed.

Topics Covered: The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger, Chapter 12, Holden Caulfield, Horwitz, Phoebe, Robot, Beowulf Rochlen, teenage alienation, loneliness, censorship, Dunning-Kruger effect, Scythe, banned books, banned books podcast, book banning, literary analysis, comedy podcast