Reviews (2)

Well presented details
Elvis may have sung songs like "It's a Wonderful World" and "Fairytale" but this book suggests that Elvis' personal life was all too real, plagued by his own excesses and outside forces apparently driven to exploit him, indeed to a tragic end. This subject matter is very disturbing and FBI file information seems to support such speculation.
However, if we accept that Elvis actually had a terminal illness [reportedly bone cancer] and that his personal conversations foreshadowing his own impending death are true then one must think that his passing was not the result of foul play. Yes, it is reasonable to wonder about the described telephone calls to Washington close to the time of a Grand Jury hearing to address his victimization. But I must reiterate that Elvis Presley's health was possibly in rapid decline and this points to a much more common departure from this realm.

Can you keep a secret?
Already some years ago, the FBI made the "Elvis-file" available for the public. It's the best-sold FBI-file in history. Elvis-The Secret Files is based on the FBI files and contains remarkable interpretations from John Parker.

The files contain letters (e.g. from people in 1956 concerned about Elvis' supposed bad influence on the American youth), pictures and other "facts" only interesting for the die-hard Elvisfan. Parker comes up with a theory that it is likely that Elvis has been murdered, perhaps even by the mafia. Elvis was swindled for about $1 million with the redecoration of one of his planes and the planned lease of it. The plan went wrong and Elvis was supposed to testify in a lawsuit against those swindlers at the end of August 1977. Elvis died at August 16, 1977...

Read this book yourself and make up your own mind. One thing is for sure: you won't be bored. ... Read more

Book Description

"During his life, Elvis Presley was idolized; since his death, he has become immortalized.Now, drawing from LIFE magazine's unrivaled archives, Charles Hirshberg and the editors of LIFE chronicle in pictures and text Elvis' transformation from shy teenager to superstar.It is a story best told in the details, and this singular collection of unforgettable pictures reveal all those details - the sad, the funny, and the passionate.

From the magazine that set the standard for photo-journalism comes the definitive pictorial biography of the rocker they called "The King", a man who continues to bring joy and inspiration to his countless fans everywhere.Elvis is more than the stuff of rock-n-roll legend - he is an American Icon.ïIncludes many rare photos pulled from the LIFE Photo Library archives. ïCoincides with the 25th anniversary of Elvis' death.Sure to generate media interest. ïElvis, like the Beatles, remains one of the endearing pop icons of our time. ïAs the first national magazine to cover Elvis, LIFE tells his story as no other publication can, with over 250 heart-stopping photographs. ... Read more

Book Description

Critics debate Plath's value as a writer: detractors call her overly sentimental, while admirers argue that she engendered whole movements of women's poetry. The works studied in this volume include The Bell Jar, A Fine White Flying Myth, and But I Have a Self to Recover.

This title, Sylvia Plath, part of Chelsea House Publishers’ Modern Critical Views series, examines the major works of Sylvia Plath through full-length critical essays by expert literary critics. In addition, this title features a short biography on Sylvia Plath, a chronology of the author’s life, and an introductory essay written by Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities, Yale University. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A lucid, compelling, and precise biography
Peter Steinberg's new biography charts Sylvia Plath's tumultous career in moving prose. His narrative demonstrates precision and is informed by the recent landmarks in Plath scholarship. His own passion for Plath's writing and travels to Plath sites lend a significant dimension to his descriptions of the places and events that inspired some of Plath's most famous poems. I think this book will be a welcome addition to high school reading lists and will inspire students to explore Plath's poetry.

New biography with new facts
I am the author of this book, for which Linda Wagner-Marting graciouslessly wrote the Foreword. This new biography of Plath, the first to appear since the early 1990s, presents Plath the poet and Plath the person as inseparable. It's about her writing life.

The mini-review Amazon has is for the Harold Bloom collection of essays published in the late 1980s. I certainly hope that they fix this in order to prevent confusion and/or slower sales.

Cheers! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Kicks A$$
This was a really great book. Books about football hall of famers do not get better. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Not just another Elvis book!! : )
Oh my, where to begin ! : )
I just opened my still shrinkwrapped book of Private Presley today (had bought it years before, put it in a SAFE place and FORGOT about it, till now..that is (could kick myself.) It is a gorgeous, wonderful, funny and endearing little number with loads of great pics with a still relaxed Elvis in all his youthful GLORY! : )
Any Elvis fan should have one, and now ..I do ! : )
If anyone can still find a copy of this ( I am NOT selling mine, thankyouverymuch! ) BUY IT..it is worth every penny! The CD is wonderful..playful Elvis talking and singing spontaneously..well almost spontaneously LOL : ) Not that stiff stuff on American TV,Radio..no, no..just Elvis as we would all have probably seen him in our ..er..living rooms?? Oh, Yeah !!..Riiight! LOL : )
But certainly the way we have WANTED to see and hear him!
I wish people luck in finding this gem. Actually, there should just be another printing, I cannot believe that there are not more than just 100,000 fans of Elvis out there screaming for this book! : )
Tracks include: I Gotta Woman, Tweedle Dee,Maybellene,That's All Right Mama, Blue Moon of Kentucky (my personal fave),There's Good Rockin' Tonight, Baby Let's Play house and those great interviews & just talkin' : )
This book makes up for all those tell-all books out there that were unkind to Elvis! He was, after all, just a human, and probably wouldv'e love to live like one, given the chance. In Germany he had a freedom he would never experience here. As well, he never got back there, either.
Anyway, great tribute to the greatest guy...Elvis Presley! : )
If that Parker guy wouldv'e been smarter, he wouldv'e given Elvis some slack to just live a little, they both would have been better off and Elvis might still be alive !
Bottom line..Buy it if you can find it! Nothing comes close to this book! : ) ... Read more

Reviews (19)

A well-researched bio that pulls alot of Elvis info together
Yes, much of this biography has information covered in other books, but this book pulls ALL of that information together into ONE book. Plus,it adds interviews with those who knew Elvis to give a balanced perspective of the King. No, he wasn't an angel, but he wasn't as bad as Albert Goldman's (1980) sensationized bio made him out to be. If you're a fanatical Elvis fan, you will have probably already read most of the books this bio uses. However, if you are just starting out as a "casual" Elvis fan, this is THE book to read to get started knowing about the life of King, from superstar and philanthropist to a poor boy from a dysfunctional family, warts and all. It's a fast, easy read and a book I consider a MUST for all Elvis collectors. The book doesn't hide from Elvis' bizarre side, but also takes a balanced view of his life as the one and only KING of Rock and Roll.

I could have gone the rest of my life not knowing that......
This book is good if you appreciate hear say and gossip. While I know that Elvis couldn't walk on water, there are some things in this book that didn't need to be written. You can never tell if this is a book for or against the King of Rock and Roll. I'm for him, that's why I threw the book away. I'm giving it 2 stars becuse they had some good pictures and everything was spelled correctly.

Great Book
I picked this book of just to have something to read and it floored me. The book gives you ALL of Elvis's life and not just the sanitized versiion. I would highly recommend it to anyone seeking the TRUTH about Elvis. From his greatest moments to his lowest.

Routine
If Peter Guralnick's mammoth two volume biography didn't exist, this book might serve more of a purpose. But compared to the Guralnick books this is downright flimsy. There is excruciatingly little new here though there are a few early anecdotes and some interesting interviews with marginal players in the Presley story like co-stars Deborah Walley and Mary Ann Mobley who don't get interviewed in connection with Presley very often. There is also extensive interview time spent with the infamous Dr. Nick. Otherwise the book seems like a collection od press clippings that have been trotted out dozens of times before. To make things worse, it seems that in the photo sections the authors deliberately went out of their way to find the most familiar pictures available.
You would think that there wouldn't be anything new to write about Elvis but the Guralnick books were filled with revelations. He didn't stop at the familiar and wound up turning up dozens of forgotten gems just from information that had been in the public domain but had never been gathered in a contemporary work about the king.
This book has other problems besides familiarity. Elvis' music gets glossed over. For example Elvis' 1969 memphis sessions, that produced From Elvis in Memphis and "Suspicious Minds" perhaps the artistic height of his career, get a page and a half. While the authors have an appreciation for Presley's achievement they don't always appear to have the greatest understanding of it. Reading authors like Guralnick, Dave Marsh, Greil Marcus and even Ernst Jorgenson you can feel and hear the music as you read. In their descriptions the music sets off a universe of ideas. That's not the case here. There is a discography, a filmography and a list of Elvis' TV appearances in the back but these have been done better (sometimes in entire books)many times before. In fact, the discography, because of its arbitrary selections and factual errors, is useless.
So, unless you have to read every single word that has ever been written about Elvis you can miss this one.

Well researched but not the best
A lot of work went into this book, but it lacks objectivity. It is pro-Elvis, though not excessively so, but it seems entirely too kind to Dr. Nick and Priscilla.

Dr. Nick no doubt curbed Elvis's overall drug consumption and minimized the careless peaks that would have occurred had he not been present. However, Dr. Nick was still party to the drug excess. It is difficult not to believe that his interest was primarily money at the expense of caring for Elvis. Despite receiving a hefty income, he found it necessary to borrow $200,000 from his very volatile patient. And then there was the racquetball misadventure resulting in legal estrangement. Still, I received a better appreciation for Dr. Nick's effort by reading this book. He did have a daunting task.

As regards Priscilla, the authors seem to have bought the image she has been trying to project. Finstadt's book on Priscilla presents a more plausible picture. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The possibilities
This book brings to light serious questions regarding the death of Elvis Presley. Your mind will real at the possibilities and intrigue. This is a must read for any Elvis fan or mystery lover.

Guess What? That Wasn't Elvis in the Poolhouse in '78
Mystery "Elvis" recordings, mystery "Elvis" sightings, the kind of stuff which permeated the author's first book on the subject "Is Elvis Alive", is continued here - and so is the constant reference to her [inexplicably pulled] novel "Orion" about a superstars' plan to hoax his own death, but Elvis' actual role as Agent at Large for the DEA is examined and she convinces the reader that Elvis Presley was not some flake who liked to collect badges, a portrait painted by some from his past who seem to have a huge axe to grind these days. The details of Presley's unusual will are also presented and cause one to wonder if all the facts of Elvis' passing were originally revealed.
Brewer-Giorgio's third work on the subject, "Elvis Is Alive - And He's Coming Back" (The Anonymous Press) is much better. ... Read more

Book Description

Born on January 8, 1935, in Tupelo, Mississippi, Elvis Aaron Presley was destined to rewrite the history of music almost from the moment he picked up a guitar. He played music that was rooted in blues, gospel, country and rockabilly, and he redefined a generation by breaking down the boundaries that separate white from black.Everyone listened to Elvis. Everyone danced to Elvis. Everyone had an opinion about Elvis. And the fame was nice, but it came so fast. The money. The cars. The screaming fans. Somewhere in all that, the singer from Tupelo got lost-and that's the saddest song of all. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Disappointing at best
The only parts worth reading are the prologue entitled 'Marsha Cup' and the Introduction. The author claims to have researched his subject, Elvis Presley, however after the introduction the book is full of inaccurate information that is believed to be true because it has been printed before. The author's focus is on Elvis' dark and negative side. Elvis is portrayed in his Sun years as a pill popping mama's boy who then sells out his craft (Rock n Roll) to become Colonol Tom Parker's puppet. One sentence is dedicated to Elvis' charitable contributions, and little is said about how many gold and platinum records Elvis had. When Elvis' success in record sales is mentioned it is tainted with accusations of greed.

Reading this book reminds me of the Song Elvis sang in the 70's called "The Pieces of My Life", which I shall paraphrase, 'I read through the bad parts, I read through the sad parts, but I guess the author threw the best parts away.' Reading this book left me with feelings of disappointment and depression. I would not recommend it to anyone let alone young readers.

ALL SHOOK UP: The Life and Death of Elvis Presley
To begin with, this is NOT a book for Juveniles. The Author merely repeats the same old distortions and outright lies that have been published over and over again. Isn't it about time that Elvis Presley was treated with some dignity? He was NOT a monster, but a basically fine and decent man. It's about time that His Daughter and other Loved ones were given some Peace from such garbage as is contained in this and other books of the same type. I am most disappointed with Scholastic Press for being a party to the Printing and distribution of this book.

Certain to appeal beyond the young adult age range
Barry Denenberg's All Shook Up is certain to appeal beyond the young adult age range it's intended for: this history of Elvis' life and death is lively, with black and white photos supplementing text appropriate for grades 6 and older. Any with a prior affection for Presley will find this a fine, approachable biography of his life. ... Read more

Book Description

Using exclusive access to the files of the Elvis Presley estate, The King on the Road presents a unique insider's view of Elvis' live performances. It covers his earliest gigs around the rural South, when almost singlehanded he was creating what became known as rock'n'roll, all the way up to his record-breaking spectaculars in Las Vegas. This remarkable collection of never-before-published photos, posters, news reports, and even ticket stubs adds up to a blow-by-blow acount of the entire performing career of the King. Interviews with musicians and entourage, rare facsimiles of hand-written set lists, and the exclusive complete listing of every live date that Elvis Presley ever performed accompany the illustrations to create the definitive on-stage (and back-stage) record of the most dynamic entertainer in the history of rock'n'roll. ... Read more

Reviews (25)

The King, McQueen, and the Love Machine
I have been a Barbara Leigh fan for MANY years now. Her life story has been so fantastic and exciting, that it should not only be a book, but a major motion picture. She has not only seen the world, but has met some of the very people that have shaped history. When I first heard about this book, I thought it was only going to cover the part of her life that took place in the early 70's. But it was so much more. From her childhood to current times. And her life story is just one adventure after another. This book is a must for anyone that is an Elvis, or Steve McQueen fan. It has such insight to what they were like when not in the public's eye. As I mentioned before, Barbara's life has had some very interesting twists in it. But to see how she handles three of the most powerful men that the entertainment industry has ever known, all at once, is just too exciting..... Hope you enjoy this book as much as I have.

The King, McQueen and the Love Machine
My name is Joe Esposito. I worked for Elvis for 18 years. We were very close.
I was there the first day Elvis meet Barbara Leigh in Las Vegas.
When her first saw her, he could not take his eye's off of her. Either could I. They just connected. They got to know each other very close.
They had a wonderful relationship for a few years. One of the things I liked about Barbara's book is she was very honest about her life. She had some very hard times in her earlier years.

This is the first time she has really wrote about her relations with her special men.

I think she did a wonderful job writing this book on her life. I know it had to be hard on her. It's not easy writing a book about your life. I know.

I really enjoyed reading it. And I know it is the truth because I was there. I have recomended it to a lot of my friends.

It's a great story.

The Best Autobiography I've Ever Read
Comming from the same area as Barbara and having many of the same dreams and aspirations of sucess as she,this book really hit home in a big way.I've seen 6 of her movies,one of the Playboy layouts ( slipped over to a friends house to sneak into his dads collection while his parents were away lol) and all of her Vampirella cover appearences.I first saw her on the Vampirella cover and was totaly taken with her beauty.After reading her book and also knowing a bit about her background im just totaly amazed by her.She is truly a remarkable woman in every respect.Knowing first hand how hard it is chasing sucess in the entertainment field(chased a music,writing career for 15 yrs)what she has accomplished thus far is nothing short of miraculous.Her story will make you run the entire gambit of emotions.One moment I was laughing out loud the next I was having to wipe my eyes(and Ga rednecks ain't supposed to cry)and the very next I was ready to fight for her.This book is truly moving to anyone with a heart and a must read for anyone with dreams of sucess in entertainment as her observations are dead on.Barbara sucessfuly takes you on a trip through her life and you truly feel as if you are right by her side during the whole thing from her humble beginnings to 3 of the worlds most sought after men all in a virtual knock down drag out competing for her attentions.I've been a fan of her acting and beauty for many yrs now and after reading this book I have nothing but the deepest of respect and admiration for the person she is.

Why you should buy this book:
From the minute you pick it up, you won't be able to put it down. From her humble beginnings, to her exciting Hollywood experiences, Barbara Leigh's story is written with sincerity and honesty. Her relationships are described in a way that conveys nothing but love and respect for the three men (Elvis Presley, Steve McQueen and Jim Aubrey) she shared a time of her life with. I've always been a fan of Barbara Leigh from her film and modeling career, but knew nothing of her personal life. This book not only takes you through her life, but reveals fascinating insights to Hollywood and to some of its legendary people as well. My only problem with this book is that I eventually came to page 320 (it's the last page, and I could have easily read another 320). I absolutely recommend this book! As a side note: In one chapter, Barbara refers to herself as the "original" Vampirella. As far as I'm concerned, she is the ONLY Vampirella!

If you actually read the book, "it ain't about the men"!!!!!
After purchasing this book immediately after it was printed, I was pleased to have a written history of a living icon. Notice I use the term "living". I'm not talking about the "King of Rock and Roll" (Elvis), or the "Cooler King" (McQueen) or the "Lion King" (Aubrey), I'm talking about a "Queen". Barbara Leigh had a career in the Hollywood spotlight that lasted a little over 10 years as an actress, a little longer as a professional model, and for a lifetime the role that she will always be remembered for "The Original Vampirella". She is now and will always be the most stunningly beautiful woman ever to grace this earth. What is best about this book is that looks are not the only graces she possesses. She has lived a tremendous life, fraught with ups and downs that are frankly and openly discussed. There's many books on Elvis, but only one on Barbara. I'll take "The Queen" over "The King" anyday! ... Read more

Book Description

"A beautiful and richly instructive book, a worthy and welcome sequel to Eileen Simpson's Poets in Their Youth."

Louis S. Auchincloss

An intimately perceptive account, by a poet who knew them all, of the brilliant circle of poets who lived and worked in Boston through the half-decade beginning in 1955. That was the year Peter Davison, coming to Boston as a book editor. was swept up in a world -- in a tumult -- of poetry. He rediscovered his father's old friend Robert Frost. He briefly squired Sylvia Plath. He came to know Robert Lowell (whose poems and private disasters dominated the period) and Adrienne Rich, Stanley Kunitz, Richard Wilbur. Anne Sexton, W. S. Merwin, and others who, closely bound together in friendship or rivalry or both, defined the shape of American poetry at mid-century Through their eves as well as his own, and often in their words, Davison presents a sharply fresh vision of the shift from confidence to a troubled questioning that overtook America -- a transformation that was, in a sense, foreshadowed in the sensibilities, in the writings, sometimes in the lives, of some of our finest poets. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Nice title.
Er, excuse me, but wouldn't ANY guide to Elvis have to be for the complete idiot?

Would have put 0 stars but review will not accept
My name is Richard Davis. I am an original member of the Memphis Mafia. Apparently, Frank Coffey, has not researched the subject of Elvis Presley for this book. This book is full of falsehoods and a plethora of errors and every true Elvis fan will see through the book's inaccuracies from wrong dates to out and out lies. I am an authority on Elvis because I am an original member of the Memphis Mafia and have been since 1961. I am one of the only members who actually lived with Elvis at Graceland. I was his movie stand-in, one of his bodyguards, wardrobe manager and part of his "inner circle" of friends. If you enjoy reading fiction this book is for you!

enjoyable
I found this book to enjoyable,easy to read full of lots of information.It was worth the buy.

Fun but flawed
I'm an Elvis fan, I saw him in concert three times, I have ALL his official recordings and many more 'unofficial', I've read every major Elvis biography. As a general fun introduction to the world of Elvis, this book is OK. There are several striking errors in pictures and descriptions of specific records, and some errors in describing the King's life and film work. This book seems to have been written by a real Elvis enthusiast to fit the "Complete Idiot" series format, but it was clearly not reviewed for accuracy by a real and true Elvis collector of many years. (That could be because most of them have or are trying to write their own books! I'm not.) As an overall book in this format it is an easy read, I would say enjoyable except I was dismayed each time I saw an error. This book may lead you to more in-depth and more accurate sources for specific details of Elvis' life and his recorded or filmed works. I did buy this book and I am keeping it. (Recommended in-depth authors: Guralnick--ultimate two-volume biography, Jorgenson--recordings.) ... Read more

Book Description

The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under--maybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther's breakdown with such intensity that Esther's insanity becomes completely real and even rational, as probable and accessible an experiece as going to the movies. Such deep penetration into the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche is an extraordinary accomplishment and has made The Bell Jar a haunting American classic.

Reviews (352)

Surprisingly Successful
THE BELL JAR is often compaired to Salinger's CATCHER IN THE RYE. There is actually a certain basis for this: both novels deal with youthful characters who are completely disenchanted by the world. But beyond this the comparison breaks down, for where CATCHER is essentially a character study, Plath's BELL JAR presents us with a tightly plotted story concerning a young woman's descent into insanity, and is in my opinion considerably more successful in an overall sense than virtually anything Salinger ever wrote.

The novel is largely autobiographical, recounting one of Plath's most notorious mental collapses that led to a very famous sucide attempt. In dealing with this personally volatile material, Plath shows remarkable control, and gracefully walks the fine line between carefully crafted fiction and self-indulgence, creating in the process a modern classic indicative of America at mid-century.

Plath herself considered the book simply a commercial "pot boiler," a project undertaken in the hope of generating some cash. It is quite true that book is clearly written as a popular novel rather than serious fiction; it is also quite true that the book generates enough heat to boil water. But Plath was a uniquely gifted artist, and her talent simply bursts the seams of the genre: the book is possessed of a stunning passion and numerous powerful images delivered in a singularly uncompromising tone. Highly recommended.

Important and disturbing
I recently asked my wife to create a list of the ten most important novels she has ever read; "The Bell Jar" was on her list. I have spent the past two days reading Plath's novel and I come away from the book feeling vulnerable. Plath has created a work that immerses the reader in a dark world in which mental stability is not a given. I feel a new closeness to Plath for the struggle that was her life and for the power and urge that let her transform that into art. She has ceased to be a "suicide victim" in my mind and has, instead, become a human being.

I was initially surprised by the voice of the narrator. It reminded me of Holden Caulfield -- honest, down-to-earth, knowledgeable, caustic. I found Esther immediately likeable and a sympathetic character. Reading like a diary at times, the story tells about simple events (a cab ride, a party, a visit from a boyfriend) told in simple language that frequently shines with such exquisite phrasing that I was forced to step back and laugh or smile or just appreciate Plath's ability to use language in such powerful and meaningful ways. Two examples of this:

1. Referring to a picture of Dwight Eisenhower in "Time" magazine, Plath writes: "The face of Eisenhower beamed up at me, bold and blank as the face of a fetus in a bottle." (72)
2. "I felt limp and betrayed, like the skin shed by a terrible animal. It was a relief to be free of the animal, but it seemed to have taken my spirit with it, and everything else it could lay its paws on." (83)

Language and technique made the sad events of the novel seem real and immediate. Plath selects events in a masterful way, telling stories of simple conversations, giving brief insights into the narrator's mind, exposing fears, illustrating pathologies, foreshadowing events.

The horror of the initial suicide attempt stayed with me throughout the rest of the novel. The second half that outlines her relationships with doctors and her stays in psychiatric institutions is dreamlike. We abruptly find ourselves in new surroundings, in the middle of conversations. This discontinuity creates a world that mimics Esther's increasingly nightmarish life. As readers we do not calmly watch from a distance; we are thrown into the consciousness of the patient.

"The Bell Jar" was a disturbing book, but one that expanded my understanding of Plath and her work and gave me a perspective on mental illness that I had previously lacked.

Madness and Brilliance
The Bell Jar is a stark narrative about depression, and the power it has to completely immobilize protagonist Esther Greenwood and throw her into insanity. The Bell Jar's prose is easy to read, and yet Sylvia Plath's writing style is highly sophisticated and exact, which is startling considering the nearness of her own suicide. Esther Greenwood begins an ambitious and talented young writer, working for a beauty magazine in New York, and attending college on a full scholarship. Her sorrow and madness begin to surface, and she soon finds herself trapped in a revolving door of mental asylums. The interesting thing here is way the story is told; unflinchingly and without remorse. I could hear Plath's cold, spare, incisive voice behind that of Miss Greenwood - hurting and ready to die. The Bell Jar can be read as a fierce indictment on depression. It is a brilliant, haunting, frightening work, and it held my interest intensely the whole way through.

i need help
Starter Question #1
This book is in part based on Sylvia Plath's real experiences after graduating from high school and in college. Where can you see the fictional elements creeping in? How has she altered her history to create a compelling story?

funny, lyrical, and sometimes painful -- like your own life
Don't be put off by the book's reputation as the story of a depressed not-quite-a-woman-not-a-girl protagonist--and certainly don't be put off by the fact that Sylvia Plath died very soon after writing the book. Although she is known primarily for her poetry, I've often thought that Bell Jar captured both her skill as a sharp poetess, but also her lesser-known sense of humor. The Bell Jar involves suicide attempts and mental institutions, but more importantly, it doesn't dwell on tragedy so much as cut through it. Plath's photographic depiction of what it is like to be thrust into adulthood and all the other things that aren't in childhood are equally important and remind the reader that the things that we experience are neither so beautiful nor ugly as they are absurd.

Whether or not you've ever been depressed, the Bell Jar captures not only the fear of nothing ever changing, but also the greater fear of things being different, twin processes which are, to me, at the heart of depression. ... Read more