Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

365 reviews

thequietgeek's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense

2.0

This is a very good book but I discovered a new trigger while reading, which is probably why I wouldn’t read it again

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

nemrac23's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Death, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Blood, Domestic abuse, and Violence

Minor: Racism, Homophobia, and Antisemitism

flapjackzs_'s review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Self harm, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, and Death

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Grief, and Racial slurs

Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, and Abortion

vonya45's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

4.5

A gorgeous story that is at once hard to listen to, incredibly validating and sometimes surprisingly funny. The way Plath writes with a blend of matter-of-factness and poetic imagery is a treat, made even better by Maggie Gyllenhaal's perfect reading of the audiobook. But the real heart of the novel is its depiction of depression and the image of the bell jar, suffocating its inhabitant while distorting the surrounding world. I'm sure plenty of us can see some hints of our own experiences in these descriptions. It feels like talking to someone who feels the same way, you do but they finally put the feeling into words you couldn't find. Even the non-linear structure, which can sometimes be distracting or confusing, aids the feeling of being lost in the murky grayness of a depressed person's mind, recalling memories at random and spiraling in on itself with no hold on reality. As such, it might be a really bad book choice for someone who is not doing well mentally, especially once you know how Sylvia's own life ended after the book's final warning that the bell jar may return. For me, it was a heavy read but with enough wit and humor and style to keep from getting pulled down. I'm very glad I finally read this masterpiece.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Self harm, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, and Racism

Moderate: Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Rape, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, and Misogyny

Minor: Death of parent

oz2021's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Minor: Blood

venice_the_vampire's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

i really appreciated and related to the idea of always being the perfect student but not being considered useful or smart in any way outside of that and having no idea what to when when you get out of school. i also found the insight onto how being a mentally ill woman in my grand & great-grandmothers time was, especially considering my own family history. it may not be my favorite book, but i still appreciate it for what it is.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Mental illness, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Racism, Ableism, and Violence

Minor: Sexual content

burnedoutbookdragon's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Toxic friendship, Blood, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Fatphobia, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, and Racism

extru's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I lost the track of the pages I was reading. I felt like I read 5, but I actually read 15. Loved the way narrator descripes things.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Blood, Death, and Suicide

haleiyoung's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

• 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

I can't say more good things about this book. It was truly one of the best books I have read in a while. I love the way the story was told between flashbacks of specific moments in her life that corresponded to what was happening presently, to how she described her daily life and feelings. It was bleak, realistic, and so enthralling to read. And since I want to be a therapist one day, this book gave some first account insight to what I could look like to someone struggling and the kind of impression I want to give off to make them comfortable, as well as the kinds of things they are going through themselves in the most vulnerable light. Sylvia Plath has a great ability to make the most mundane things interesting to read about, and I loved reading every second of the book. 
I will say reading the parts about her attempted suicides and suicidal ideations made me deeply uncomfortable, but I think that's when I knew it was an important read. It was ugly to read, it was horrible at times to read, but that's what made it so great because this was like reading a real person's diary. These were Esther's deepest thoughts and it is a book that has made me think a lot since reading it. I would recommend it to anyone who wasn't triggered by the material. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood

alyssams884's review against another edition

dark emotional slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, and Suicide

Moderate: Body shaming, Blood, Racism, Sexism, and Death

Minor: Vomit, Sexual content, Homophobia, Death of parent, and Medical content