The Bell Jar : A Novel

One of The Atlantics Great American Novels

A realistic and emotional novel about a woman battling mental illness and societal pressures written by the iconic American writer Sylvia Plath.

It is this perfectly wrought prose and the freshness of Plaths voice in The Bell Jar that make this book enduring in its appeal. USA Today

The Bell Jarchronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: young, brilliant, beautiful, and enormously talented, but slowly going undermaybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esthers breakdown with such intensity that Esthers neurosis becomes completely understandable and even rational, as probable and accessible an experience as going to the movies. Such thorough exploration of the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche - and the profound collective loneliness that modern society has yet to find a solution for - is an extraordinary accomplishment, and has made The Bell Jar a haunting American classic.

This P.S. edition features extra insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.