Review by beccamarriner - The Bell Jar

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beccamarriner 's review for:

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

3.5

dark emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I read this book to tick another ‘classic novel’ off my list so I wasn’t really sure what to expect. It is now easy for me to see why Plath’s work has been highly acclaimed for so long, it is beautifully written and somewhat unusual to have popular work reflect such traumatic mental health issues. It was a somber read as we spiral more with Esther but I had a bit of a disconnect with the words in the latter chapters. It may have been unconsciously done - knowing how Esther’s feelings arguably reflected Plath’s own - I may have distanced myself for getting too attached to the storyline, just in case.

Content Warnings