The Bell Jar
Sylvia Plath • 1963
Devastation Rating
mental health literary fiction trauma loss
Our Take
Esther Greenwood's descent is written with such precise, unsentimental clarity it reads like observation rather than confession — which makes it worse. Plath renders depression as a glass container that distorts everything without letting anything in or out. The novel survives its author, which is the most complicated thing about it.
Also available as an audiobook without an Audible subscription. See audiobook options →
This page contains affiliate links. If you buy a book through one of these links, we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Full disclosure →