Scan barcode
jaybie08's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
vetochka's review
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
dhall58's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
onsee's review
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
landonwittmer's review against another edition
5.0
This is a book that's going to take a long time to really emotionally digest, but my immediate reaction is that this is one of the most intimate, touching, incisive book I've ever read. It's very Catcher in the Rye-y with its first person coming-of-age narrative, but The Bell Jar feels way, way, way more representative of post-high school/college life--especially as we as a society continue to develop our understanding of mental health.
I'm not sure I have the right to talk about how the novel interacts with mental illness and suicide--I don't think I've ever been genuinely suicidal, and as much as I think there's some faulty wiring in my brain, I haven't been diagnosed with anything--but the strength of an excellent novel is to let the reader empathize with its characters even if their experiences are drastically different from their own. All this is to say that I empathized more than almost anything else I've read with Esther's (main character) struggles with her mental health, suicidal ideation, and culture's predatory view of her as a young woman. I found a lot of my own lived experiences in Esther that I haven't found anywhere else, and it's freeing, validating, comforting, therapeutic. If anyone here has mental stuff or thinks you have mental issues and have ever felt alone or alienated in your symptoms/conditions/thoughts/feelings/etc., please please please read this book.
And the PROSE, IT'S SO GOOD. You can tell Plath is a poet in her prose. Every few sentences contains a gorgeous, unexpected metaphor; Plath surprises and delights constantly with how her language examines the world. Her style is truly pure, her own. It reads kind of like Virginia Woolf but with way shorter sentences, a little more genre-y, a little more focused on the plot than the prose, which makes The Bell Jar a way easier read.
A top ten if not top five book for me. Cannot recommend enough.
I'm not sure I have the right to talk about how the novel interacts with mental illness and suicide--I don't think I've ever been genuinely suicidal, and as much as I think there's some faulty wiring in my brain, I haven't been diagnosed with anything--but the strength of an excellent novel is to let the reader empathize with its characters even if their experiences are drastically different from their own. All this is to say that I empathized more than almost anything else I've read with Esther's (main character) struggles with her mental health, suicidal ideation, and culture's predatory view of her as a young woman. I found a lot of my own lived experiences in Esther that I haven't found anywhere else, and it's freeing, validating, comforting, therapeutic. If anyone here has mental stuff or thinks you have mental issues and have ever felt alone or alienated in your symptoms/conditions/thoughts/feelings/etc., please please please read this book.
And the PROSE, IT'S SO GOOD. You can tell Plath is a poet in her prose. Every few sentences contains a gorgeous, unexpected metaphor; Plath surprises and delights constantly with how her language examines the world. Her style is truly pure, her own. It reads kind of like Virginia Woolf but with way shorter sentences, a little more genre-y, a little more focused on the plot than the prose, which makes The Bell Jar a way easier read.
A top ten if not top five book for me. Cannot recommend enough.
adam_z's review against another edition
2.0
Quick hot take: Sylvia Plath had a way with words, and the prose of The Bell Jar is the saving grace of what otherwise would have been a really drab book.
If this was written with more pedestrian prose then I might not have finished it. The first half was more interesting than the second half, which delves deeper into Esther’s mental illness.
I think this is definitely a case of some sort mental illness as opposed to mere depression. At the outset there’s not anything that Esther is particularly disturbed about. The PTSD-inducing events come later after she’s already in the throes of depression & suicidal ideation. So, as I’m journeying with Esther through her inner monologue, for a good portion of the book I’m sitting here wondering what’s so bad about her life that has her in such a state. Oh, yeah - that’s right: mental illness [smacks forehead].
If the author hadn’t taken her own life a few years after the book was published, it would have been interesting to see what more she might have written had she tried her hand at fiction again.
Bottom line is that this didn’t really do it for me. I feel like I went on this aimless journey with Esther Greenwood - a journey that kind of lacked a proper beginning, and very much lacked a proper ending. I wanted to know what happened to Esther after the last page. Was she truly getting better, or was she putting on a mask yet again while still fantasizing about her own death? I know the book is said to be semi-autobiographical, but Esther Greenwood was not Sylvia Plath, and the stories of their lives, while similar, were not identical, so I cannot automatically accept Esther’s end to be that of the author.
So, 2 out of 5 stars: “It’s okay” [shrug]
If this was written with more pedestrian prose then I might not have finished it. The first half was more interesting than the second half, which delves deeper into Esther’s mental illness.
I think this is definitely a case of some sort mental illness as opposed to mere depression. At the outset there’s not anything that Esther is particularly disturbed about. The PTSD-inducing events come later after she’s already in the throes of depression & suicidal ideation. So, as I’m journeying with Esther through her inner monologue, for a good portion of the book I’m sitting here wondering what’s so bad about her life that has her in such a state. Oh, yeah - that’s right: mental illness [smacks forehead].
If the author hadn’t taken her own life a few years after the book was published, it would have been interesting to see what more she might have written had she tried her hand at fiction again.
Bottom line is that this didn’t really do it for me. I feel like I went on this aimless journey with Esther Greenwood - a journey that kind of lacked a proper beginning, and very much lacked a proper ending. I wanted to know what happened to Esther after the last page. Was she truly getting better, or was she putting on a mask yet again while still fantasizing about her own death? I know the book is said to be semi-autobiographical, but Esther Greenwood was not Sylvia Plath, and the stories of their lives, while similar, were not identical, so I cannot automatically accept Esther’s end to be that of the author.
So, 2 out of 5 stars: “It’s okay” [shrug]
mockingjayx16's review
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexual content
Minor: Ableism and Xenophobia
klarasandlin's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 ⭐️ I recently discovered the beauty that is Sylvia Plath's writing. Finding more and more poems and quotes from her I began to grow fond of her neverending ambivalence and personal outlook on life. I found myself relating to each word wrote and seeing my own thought patterns reflected in hers.
"The Bell Jar" climbed to first priority after becoming enchanted with Plath's writing. Reading this book directly after "A Little Life" by Hanya Yanagihara has created two adjacent favorites. But because I entered this novel with such expectations and preconceived opinions, I can not be sure how large of an effect my bias has on my review. I recognised many quotes in this book and underlined an extreme amount of one-liners. Plath's way with words combined with her existential and insightful thoughts create a such me-atmosphere. It really is perfect writing about perfect concepts for someone like me.
However, I am not sure that the book had that strong of a conclusion or enough of soul-grabbing moments. I do wish that it had been longer and would have loved to get even deeper into the character study. The metaphors are beautiful and relevant, but could have been explored even more.
Taking everything into consideration, the novel is for me a 5-star read. I relate so much to Esther and feel myself intertwined with the lines in this book. The writing is phanomenal and the insights even more so. It is really a beautiful work of art, and I am now even more interested in looking further into Plath's poetry since I think that might catch me even more.
"The Bell Jar" climbed to first priority after becoming enchanted with Plath's writing. Reading this book directly after "A Little Life" by Hanya Yanagihara has created two adjacent favorites. But because I entered this novel with such expectations and preconceived opinions, I can not be sure how large of an effect my bias has on my review. I recognised many quotes in this book and underlined an extreme amount of one-liners. Plath's way with words combined with her existential and insightful thoughts create a such me-atmosphere. It really is perfect writing about perfect concepts for someone like me.
However, I am not sure that the book had that strong of a conclusion or enough of soul-grabbing moments. I do wish that it had been longer and would have loved to get even deeper into the character study. The metaphors are beautiful and relevant, but could have been explored even more.
Taking everything into consideration, the novel is for me a 5-star read. I relate so much to Esther and feel myself intertwined with the lines in this book. The writing is phanomenal and the insights even more so. It is really a beautiful work of art, and I am now even more interested in looking further into Plath's poetry since I think that might catch me even more.
mausliest's review
dark
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
bloodroses's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0