Monday, April 6, 2009

ON BOOKS ~ The Bell Jar...

MizB asks you to:
  • Grab your current read.
  • Let the book fall open to a random page.
  • Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from that page.
  • Share the title of the book the teaser comes from…that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given!
  • Please avoid spoilers!

From pg. 36 of THE BELL JAR by Sylvia Plath (fiction - sort-of)...

"We hugged each other and then said good-bye and went off to opposite ends of the hall to lie down in our own rooms. There is nothing like puking with somebody to make you into old friends."

I chose this particular Teaser because it shows the terrific sense of humor that Sylvia Plath interjected throughout this book of such serious trauma. I went into this book expecting a dark, deep, terrifying experience about mental illness and suicidal thoughts that would leave me depressed for weeks on end. I wasn't even sure how it ended up on my To Read shelf and just wanted to get it over with so it would stop glaring at me. But I thoroughly enjoyed the mostly autobiographical experience Plath shared here. She placed me in her main character's shoes and gave me great perspective on being trapped inside yourself with a reality that doesn't mesh with what the rest of the world expects of you. And although the story can be dark, that sense of humor shone through a tale that is as much one of survival as anything else.

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

I had mixed expectations going in, but ended up loving this book as well :)

Erika Powell said...

great teaser. The only Plath I have read is Ariel, a collection of her poetry and I really liked it.

Brooke from The Bluestocking Guide said...

LOL! Kinda gross.

teaser

kayerj said...

I just love it when books surprise us

kaye’s teaser

Cathreine @ The Blonde Diaries said...

I've always been aware of this book but have never picked it up. That was an interesting teaser because it is so true. I will have to look into this book a little more after reading your thoughts on it.

Thanks for sharing!

Alyce said...

Love the quote! I have really been wanting to read this one as well, but had the same misgivings. I may have to give it a try.

Mary (Bookfan) said...

I read this in high school, probably should read it again.

Teddyree said...

LOL, you picked a great teaser! Going to look into this one!

Margot said...

I've had this book on my list also but just couldn't get myself in the mood to read it. I'm glad you shared your experience. Good teaser.

me said...

What CBD said :-)

Anonymous said...

That's great, I didn't see this one before.

Penny said...

Great stuff M!
I am excited to get this and start it :)
I may start participating in Teaser Tuesday :)