From the Bookshelf of Around the World in 80 Books…

The Bell Jar

Sylvia Plath

Start date: January 15, 2016

Finish date: February 15, 2016

Discussion: Group Reads Discussions

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What Members Thought

Sep 30, 2018 Colleen Chi-Girl rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: women-centered, classics

This was a painful read, however beautifully written in a prose-like way thanks to the brilliance of Sylvia Plath. We have this amazing woman who is depressed, and in today's world, could have been taken care of, properly diagnosed, and given meds to help her. Instead, she was subjected to horrors in the guise of helping her through her "mental illness". Bad-boy-screwed-up-male doctor making this poor woman suffer in every single way. Her life was no longer a life, nor was it her life. The contr ...more

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Sep 07, 2020 Astrid Lim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classic, second-hand, america, sicklit, mental-illness, popsugar-2020, banned-books

This is a heartbreaking story about a girl who realized that her mental health is declining. The realness of her thoughts, her fear, her slowly but surely descent to insanity - it's all so frightening and sad. You can't help but think that the writer was really experiencing those things, and this book is some kind of semi autobiography of her. And it's getting even sadder when you know that it's true.

Sylvia Plath has lead a very remarkable but very sad life. The Bell Jar gave us a glimpse of us ...more

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