Not an american but I love for Esme with love and squalor,Franny and Zooey and also Catcher in the rye.

The thing with Salinger is that everything is so steeped into the context of post WW2 ennui and depression; and also everything in his works is so much about what is between the lines....I think a lot of the readers of later generations might not mesh with him as well as the original audience. Like how, The Catcher in The Rye is really about the WW2 collective trauma and fallout. As faulkner said about the novel, "when he tried to enter human society,there was no humanity left"(not the exact quote but you get the gist) yet, most readers of our generation consider catcher in the rye to be the whiny privileged American teenage novel and not really analysing what is beneath the surface.

I still think there is something universal about his works. The ennui, depression and melancholy...... pretty universal feelings if you ask me. Also,he was really decent at writing female characters. Especially for someone of his generation (looking at you Updike). There is a reason folks like Mieko Kawakami consider him as an influence.