Sylvia Plath (under the pseudonym “Victoria Lucas”) published her first and only novel “The Bell Jar” in 1963, a mere month before taking her own life. However, if you are looking for a good read that will make you think then please give this a try.The name Sylvia Plath instantly calls to mind the author-poet’s untimely and disturbing suicide infamously killing herself by sticking her head in an oven, Plath has become something of an icon among existentialists and people who suffer from mental illnesses alike. If you’re sensitive to the topic of suicide and mental illness this probably wouldn’t be the book for you. This novel is not a cheerful and happy one. She just couldn’t silence the demons in her own head. She had two small children and from all accounts everything was going good in her life. Plath committed suicide in 1963, just one month after this novel released in the UK. What really adds depth to this book, at least to me, is the fact that Sylvia Plath was clinically depressed. You can be young or old, smart or ignorant, wealthy or poor, it truly doesn’t matter. It makes you realize that mental illness doesn’t have a specific “look”. I think it handles the topic of mental illness and suicide gracefully. This book captures that fear of adulthood when you suddenly have to decide who you’re going to be and what you want out of life. It’s also incredibly relatable if you’ve ever suffered with anxiety, depression or just the stresses of college and life. I won’t give any more details so as to avoid spoilers. The whole story is about her deepening depression and eventual mental break. She’s indecisive (same) and can’t make up her mind what she wants to do with her life. It’s apparent from the beginning that she’s also very anxious and is worried about her future. Esther is a middle class, studious, intelligent and pretty young woman. The novel revolves around Esther Greenwood. I’m going to give my thoughts on the book but I enjoy talking about the author as well when I do a review, especially someone as troubled as Sylvia Plath.

It was published under Plath’s own name in 1967 and then in the United States in 1971. This book was Plaths’ only novel and was published for the first time under the pseudonym, Victoria Lucas, in 1963. I’m a little late but I decided to finally read The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath.

The bell jar victoria lucas