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mysafe_place's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug use, Blood, and Cultural appropriation
imaclown_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Vomit and Injury/Injury detail
abirej's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Drug use, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Lesbophobia
natalie_jnm's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Mental illness, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Suicide
evemlacey's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
If I could pick three words to describe this novel, I would say moody, feminist, and abstract. It follows events in the life of Esther Greenwood, who struggles with her mental health and life in general. You follow her in this dreamy, almost unreal state of mind throughout the book. It is quite dark and it's probably not suitable for people who get triggered easily.
This was an intellectual, thought-provoking read and I'll be on the lookout for similar books in the future.
Graphic: Suicide attempt
Moderate: Mental illness, Self harm, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Sexual content
eva_vva's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Drug use, Infertility, Racial slurs, and Abandonment
nightisareader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Section one:
What I absolutely adored about this book is the stream of consciousness writing style. It was neatly tied together and everything found its end nicely. The vocabulary was a bit meh but I guess it works. The book was quite... American? I don’t know honestly, I’m too Asian for it probably so, reading things like “...he was trying to prove he could be aesthetic...” had me cringe just a little bit. But that’s on me haha. The characters were realistic, the events as well, without any... poetic layer. Yeah, let’s call it that.
Oh and the lovely analogies! I did wish they were explained a bit more but it’s fine, I guess, since the tone of the book was not complimentary to huge descriptions that creep up your body and gently sink themselves into your skin.
Section two:
Now this part is about Esther herself and do I like her character or not? The answer WAS a big fat no but then she sorta grew on me but I still dislike her. Why? There I’m a bit lost; not completely though. The girl was racist and hateful. My friend pointed out that being hateful is a depression thing which lead to an odd question where even now I’m wondering if her racism and hate is justified by her mental condition but I’m choosing to not ponder over it for too long.
Overall, the book is a tiny bit overhyped but it has its charms.
One thing though, I do not know what kind of readers I would recommend this to because for some it would be triggering, for some unrelatable, and I’m a tiny bit concerned for those who do find it relatable (minus the cracks that let in the light of hope)
What I will say is that if you pick up the book, make sure you learn from her, not the methods to succumb but the methods to survive in the bell jar.
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
meilanon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Suicide, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Racism
lil_2102's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
ronyareadsbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Fatphobia, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Sexism