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donnalwhitney 's review for:
Red Comet: The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath
by Heather Clark
This autobiography is astonishingly detailed about Plath's written work, starting in childhood. There seem to be an incredible number of surviving papers, even from her youth (early poems, journals, letters, school papers). In the midst of at-times-overwhelming detail, some major life events and people go without comment. For example, other than the fact that she wanted to go to college somewhere other than her hometown (Wellesley), why did she want to go to Smith? Why a women's college? She didn't seem to consider any other options other than Smith and Wellesley. And she seems to have been close to her brother, but he only occasionally appears in the book, and only near the end do we find out that he worked for IBM and lived in New York. We learn far more about some of Plath's many boyfriends during high school and college.
Even so, it is an interesting book, particularly in how it considers the intersection of Plath's mental illness and (mis)treatment, the position of women in society in the US and England in the 1950s and early 60s, and her brilliance and ambition. I did not know that she also had artistic talents; there are some examples of her drawings and other artworks in the book. Some are amazing.
Even so, it is an interesting book, particularly in how it considers the intersection of Plath's mental illness and (mis)treatment, the position of women in society in the US and England in the 1950s and early 60s, and her brilliance and ambition. I did not know that she also had artistic talents; there are some examples of her drawings and other artworks in the book. Some are amazing.