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[alyson]

Note: should I keep writing in now that I'm on #26? I like to, but I don't want to muddy up the plan. Stop me, before I write again!

I've always understood Sylvia Plath to be depressing as hell, so I've never bothered to read her poetry. However, on the recommendation of a friend, I took a look at The Bell Jar.

This was a surprising book. I expected heavy, woeful phrases and some gothically metaphorical story. Instead, her prose feels very contemporary, and it's easy to find yourself getting involved. It's not always easy to understand, because she seems not to understand the situations herself; but you can ride along with the protagonist and wonder with her at why things are happening.

It's one of those literal slice-of-life books: it takes the fictional Esther's timeline and describes a string about six months long, with not much more feeling of explanation or closure than the girl herself would feel. I suppose I'd recommend you read this because this is what Plath is all about, and people can get pretty excited about her. Maybe I'll get something deeper out of my next reading, but all she managed to do for me this time was give me ennui. I'm sure she'd have been satisfied with that...

[shaw]

Keep on writing!