Last Day of the Last Furlough
"Last Day of the Last Furlough" is a short story by American author J. D. Salinger. It covers the last days of furlough for Babe Gladwaller before he is shipped off to the war. Salinger claimed indifference toward this story but it remains an important work (ushering in "something new in [his] work"), and among his most intensely personal. He uses his own Army ID number as Babe's, perhaps in reference to his own departure for the war. Babe spends most of the time with his little sister, Mattie, until his fellow soldier Vincent Caufield comes over to spend the evening with them before departing in the morning. In this story, Vincent announces his brother Holden has been reported Missing in Action. Babe and Mattie's relationship mirrors the future relationship between Holden and Phoebe. Babe's monologue to his sister is poignant and reminiscent of Holden's desire to catch innocence.
| Works by J. D. Salinger | |
|---|---|
| Novels | The Catcher in the Rye (1951) |
| Short story collections | Nine Stories (1953) • Franny and Zooey (1961) • Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction (1963) |
| Short stories | "Blue Melody" • "Both Parties Concerned" • "A Boy in France" • "De Daumier-Smith's Blue Period" • "Down at the Dinghy" • "For Esmé with Love and Squalor" • "Go See Eddie" • "The Hang of It" • "Hapworth 16, 1924" • "The Heart of a Broken Story" • "I'm Crazy" • "Just Before the War with the Eskimos" • "Last Day of the Last Furlough" • "The Laughing Man" • "The Long Debut of Lois Taggett" • "The Ocean Full of Bowling Balls" • "Once a Week Won't Kill You" • "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" • "Personal Notes of an Infantryman" • "Pretty Mouth and Green My Eyes" • "Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction" • "Slight Rebellion off Madison" • "Soft-Boiled Sergeant" • "Teddy" • "Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut" • "The Varioni Brothers" • "The Young Folks" |
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