J.D. Salinger, the reclusive Catcher in the Rye author who hasn’t published an original work in more than 40 years, died of natural causes Wednesday at his home in Cornish, N.H. He was 91.

Writes the Associated Press: "The Catcher in the Rye, with its immortal teenage protagonist, the twisted, rebellious Holden Caulfield, came out in 1951, a time of anxious, Cold War conformity and the dawn of modern adolescence. The Book-of-the-Month Club, which made Catcher a featured selection, advised that for ‘anyone who has ever brought up a son’ the novel will be ‘a source of wonder and delight — and concern.’"

Sallinger’s subsequent books didn’t strike quite the same chord with audiences (though his Franny and Zooey is a favorite of actress Jodie Foster, and actress Zooey Deschanel is named after the titular character), but he continues to be studied in schools and is well-regarded by literary scholars.

Just last year Salinger consulted with lawyers over a planned sequel to The Catcher in the Rye by a Swedish author using the pseudonym J.D. California. An injunction was filed, preventing the book from being published in the United States.