Bell Jar

Rating:
Summary: Truely special and (eventually) comforting.
Review: One concerned with self-worth recommended this book to me right during IB exams time. Impossible to describe with one-word adjectives, this book achieves just the right balance between personal story-telling and literary devices such as symbolism. Reading it once will leave you with a rare feeling of empathy and comfort since Esther readily shares the most unusual views about our society and our role in it. Analysing it is worth the effort: meaningful patterns about her personality are carefully hidden. Truely fulfilling.

Rating:
Summary: Enthralling
Review: Sylvia Plath's account of a young woman's descent into madness is a startling, often amusing, and sometimes terrifying tale. Her use of simile is astounding and her straight-forward approach to the main character's thoughts and feelings really gives you a sense of the young girl's plight. A good read that, while sometimes tedious, is definitely worth the time.

Rating:
Summary: Bell Jar
Review: The "Bell Jar" was a facinating book of life and confusion. I found it intriguing. And a very well written book that I think every English class should read because it demonstrates how much you should value your life because you don't know how good you have it. I only gave this book a 4 star rating because I thought it was a bit confusing and hard to follow because every page had a flashback in it, making it difficult to know when she's talking about the present or the past. It still is a very good book, and i recommend that everyone with at least an 8th grade reading level read the "Bell Jar."

Rating:
Summary: Excellent plot and story line, a little weak at the ending.
Review: This story was well-written and I could totally relate with Esther. Plath is excellent at writing in the way that we think inside of our heads. The only reason I chose not to give the story five stars is that the ending was weak and lacked closure. However I truly feel that everyone who reads this book can identify with the trials and tribulations that Ester is faced with.

Rating:
Summary: Incredible account of a difficult-to-address subject
Review: The Bell Jar is an increadibly understandable account of the experiences of a woman as she goes insane. Through every word of the book, I could almost rationalize her feelings as she goes insane. Seeing her life through her eyes, she dosn't seem as insane as she may actually have been. The mindset of The Bell Jar is so different from what that which we feel on a regular daily basis, but while reading the book you almost begin to think like Esther. The Bell Jar is one of the very few books that can take a serious, fictional approach to real-life insanity. And of course, the bell jar may have lifted off of Esther at the end of the book, but it obviously did once again descend on Sylvia Plath.

Rating:
Summary: The Bell Jar
Review: I read this book in my 9th grade honors english class. This dramatic story is definetly one of my favorite books. Sylvia's tragic life and deseperate reach for help gave me a new aspect on life. I believed it was touching, and a true inner look into her mind. I was also fortunate enought to get to read some of Plath's poetry, which I also enjoyed. Her creative way of writing, and interesting aspect on life let's you see a double-side to things. Reading the book made me see a fragile person turn to depression and fall father and farther away from the rest of the world. It opened my mind to reading different style's of books and I know I will be definetly reading Plath's works again.

Rating:
Summary: The Bell Jar
Review: -I loved the Bell Jar so much. It was an all-around well written story. The main character was developed so well that I could feel her pain and the imagery was incredible that I could see all her observations. Not only did I enjoy this book, but her poetry is do deep and complex, that her poetry is too one of my favorites.-Erica Burbano

Rating:
Summary: Investigating Depression
Review: I recently had to read The Bell Jar for my Honor's English Class. I did not begin the book with a positive attitude, I had no interest to read about Sylvia Plath's semi-autobiographical plummet into depression. Yet as I finished the first chapter I was thoroughly engrosed in her style of writing and the interesting way she presented her characters and Esther's own thoughts. I would definetely recommend the book.

Rating:
Summary: The Bell Jar
Review: I read Silvia Plaths THe Bell Jar this year in my ninth grade honors english class. I found it to be so interesting that someone could be so dwn on their life when it truly was not that bad. It let you see into the mind of a depressed person which fascinated me and encourage deep conversation among my classmates and I.

Rating:
Summary: The Bell Jar
Review: I had to read The Bell Jar for english class this year. It dealt with issues I wasn't used to reading about and I'm really glad we read it. It may have been depressing but to read about her path to suicide was interesting.