Monday, May 12, 2008

Sylvia Plath wrote childrens books?!?

Sylvia Plath was another one of those crazy tragic and vastly talented artists like van Gogh or Frida Kahlo. She wrote The Bell Jar, but is mostly known for her confessional poetry and, strangely, for the fact that she committed suicide. She herself says in The Bell Jar, "If neurotic is wanting 2 mutually exclusive things at one and the same time then I'm neurotic as hell." I was reading about her today and learned that she also penned 4 childrens books. Ha ha I would really like to see one of them, for I just can't imagine what such a sad woman might write for kids. Check out the video of her reading her poem "Lady Lazarus" in the next entry.

An excerpt:
I am your opus,
I am your valuable,
The pure gold baby

That melts to a shriek.
I turn and burn.
Do not think I underestimate your great concern.

Ash, ash ---
You poke and stir.
Flesh, bone, there is nothing there----

A cake of soap,
A wedding ring,
A gold filling.

Herr God, Herr Lucifer
Beware
Beware.

Out of the ash
I rise with my red hair
And I eat men like air.

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