#6 of 2012: Your Own, Sylvia by Stephanie Hemphill
The first time I read Sylvia Plath, which was in sophomore year, she gave me a funny feeling - a cross between creepiness and excitement. In my then-limited mind, she was someone I didn’t really want to go in-depth with because I found her and her works too morbid. A couple of years later, I managed to get a bit closer to for her, especially after reading The Bell Jar, and found out there were a lot of things about her life I could relate to. It was like an epiphany: She wasn’t that different from the rest of us (‘cept for her genius in writing poetry). This book is a testament. Written in fictional verses in voices of the people Sylvia Plath has lived and grown up with, it was incredible to see that her life was not that “special” from most people. Sure, she lost her father at such a young age but she was also an exceptional student, had great friends, led a good life, which are experiences not unusual to many. The way the verses were laid page by page weren’t v. revealing of how Sylvia Plath ended up the way she did, though. But I really can’t blame Stephanie Hemphill - after all, nobody can’t truly explain these things; instead, I’d like to commend her for this book. It’s v. hard to write about someone you love and inspires you greatly, because while you’ll always be proud of it, there’s that doubt that you didn’t do your “idol” justice.
Yay!
-Footnotes galore!! For every verse, Hemphill included biographical notes at the bottom. Whether this was your first encounter with Sylvia Plath or not, these facts were terribly helpful in understanding the life of the poet.
Boo!
-The part where Sylvia Plath died and her mother, Aurelia, was an ocean away and couldn’t go to her funeral because of her weak health made me emotional. I had to contain my self because I was reading at the library walk and did not want people to see me cry over a book in public. This book is simply not for public reading, unless you want to get discovered as an actress.
