Rating: 
Summary: I Cringed
Review: I cringed when reading the suicidal episodes that Esther Greenwood(Sylvia Plath's alterego) put herself through. I'm thinking, " Why would a witty, tall, charming, intelligent girl on college scholarship and great grades and a loving mother want to end it all?" I'm a 28 year old male who finds witty and cynical girls like Esther charming so when I came upon the multiple suicide attempts, I'm cringing pissed off thinking, "Why?" I would be cheating you if I told you - read it and find out. The book was a normal coming of age type book for the first 100 pages, and then all of a suddent Esthter talks of the 19 razors blades she keeps in her purse, and then the entire premise of the novel deepened tenfold and took an unforgettable 180 degree turn into the enigmatic bell jar. When she vividly imagines slitting her wrists I felt nauseous and about to puke wanting to throw the book down. Needless to say, I really got into the novel and the characters -undoubtedly because they're all real people in Plath's life... This classic is deeply disturbing, yet refreshingly redeeming & reinvigorating. FYI: A must read - not just for chics.
Rating:
Summary: My personal bell jar
Review: I read this book upon the recommendation of my best friend. I am a teenager and like many of the other people who have written reviews for "The Bell Jar", I have suffered from depression. When I was reading this book, I was surprised by how similar Esther's feelings were to my own. Some reviews mention that they feel that her depression is not credible. I on the other hand thought her depression felt real and justified, almost tanglible. The bell jar is a perfect metaphor for how you can sometimes feel while afflicted with depression. The detached feeling can be insufferable. I thoroughly enjoyed, and was touched by this book. It is definitely worth a read...
Rating: 
Summary: I don't get it
Review: I have a bad habit of reading the reviews for books before I start reading and I often find myself wondering if I read the same book everyone else did. The Bell Jar was one of those books. I'd heard from several classmates that it was a wonderful book, and I read very positive reviews from this very website, but I found the book to be quite the opposite of what I had expected. Perhaps The Bell Jar is a work that is very limited in it's scope of readers, or perhaps I completely missed the point of this book being written, though I've always prided myself as being a very diligent reader. I read it in one sitting, though I was constantly begging myself to put it down, and I still could not find the connections between all the events in the book. This is a story about the (rather dull) everyday life of a depressed woman where most (if not all) of the notable events take place in the mind. And while stories like this must certainly inspire those in similar positions, I beleive that the events in books should fit together to be unified at the conclusion, and The Bell Jar did not do this for me. There were parts of it I enjoyed and parts that I may even remember, but, having heard the compliments of other reders, I'll humor myself in believing I've read the wrong book.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't mind me...
Review: I'm just getting really sick of depressed "genius"es. I know that perhaps when it was written this book had more pull, but right now the genius syndrome is just getting old. I don't mind characters with sad heads, but as long as they are presented in a new way. The way Esther is presented is "oh, I'm so sad, but God I get a lot of awards and people really really like me, but oh no! and I'm the smartest person in this entire story and blah blah." Trust me, I realize that this is extremely realistic and everyone gets sad, but I just wanted a little more from the writer-something jarring. But, I always expect too much. Still worth reading-obviously very influential.
Rating:
Summary: A Trip Into the Mind of Esther Greenwood
Review: "The Bell Jar" is an excellent piece of literature with a feminest feeling. Sylvia Plath shows you the inner depths of the mind of Esther Greenwood. Her feelings and knowledge are portrayed through what seems like her diary. It was an outstanding book and I absolutely adored reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: Depressing
Review: The Bell Jar is a story of a teenage girl, Ester Greenwood, who dives deeper and deeper into depression, rejection & suicidal thoughts. The novel starts out with Ester's internship in NYC for a magazine, all seems normal. However, when Ester returns home she is on a downward spiral, eventually going through with her suicide thoughts and ending up in an instutition. Not having suffered from depression and self-esteem issues, it was hard for me to relate to Ester and her troubles. The Bell Jar is a a very sad tale of depression, thoughts of suicide, belonging and self-worth.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant. Perfect. Still True Today
Review: While I am not a fan of her poetry (OK, I admit it, I don't like any poetry, sorry if I lose culture points), Plath's The Bell Jar is brilliant, and still rings true today. Esther is a brilliant, prideful woman in a world where women aren't supposed to be either and are instead supposed to be like a minor character in the book whom Esther despises--a typical suburban cow, whining kids in tow. At the end of The Bell Jar, I believe we are supposed to ask the question, is Esther crazy or is her madness an appropriate reaction to the world in which she lives? The answer I believe is the latter. This book is a must read for every sensitive individual, male or female, who doesn't (or doesn't want to) think of the typical hysterical, shrieky, irritating stereotype when he or she hears the phrase "women and depression".
Rating:
Summary: A Story That All Need To Read
Review: Many don't undersatnd why the character of Esther goes crazy but I kind of do. I have been and am still partially in the same place as Esther. I'm not exactly depressed, or crazy, but I do have my moments when I feel useless and better off dead. That is why I loved this book so much. I've always felt very alone in my feelings, and this book proved to me that I am not the only one. That I am not alone. At the same time this book also angered me in the fact that Mrs. Plath leaves us the readers completely hanging at the end. Does she get out? Does she go back to college? Does she ever get married? And what exactly did the doctor fix after her encounter with Irvine (I'm trying not to reveal too much)? Overall, I think everyone should read this book. Whether you feel like the character in the book, or you may know somebody like them, I think this book can inspire more understanding with people. I really don't like using the terms crazy, insanity, or even depression when describing what it is Esther suffers from in the book, because none of the above really describe it. I know, because I feel it too, and none of those terms describe me. At least I don't think so. And now I know there are others out there who feel the same as I do thanks to this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Who is the girl within?
Review: In this book of a small period of Sylvia Plath's (a famous poet)college life, we see how she acts and how her feelings are contrary. Her attitude and personality is revealed by the divine things she does, how she feels about them, and how she reacts. This book is well written, a deeply private internal adventure of one of the best writers. Many say when life hands you lemons, make lemonade. Sylvia says to throw them back.
Rating:
Summary: The Bell Jar
Review: The Bell Jar was a very serious book about a young woman deciding to die with herself as the killer. I must admit I usually don't read such heavy books... the storyline was a bit depressing and twisted but the book was written amazingly-- only Plath could turn a serious and depressing storyline into a wonderful read.
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